‘Don’t get me wrong, it’s fun here, but …: ambivalence and paradox in a ‘fun’ work environment

A number of books written within the last few years have been telling employers and employees to have fun at work. Whether it is throwing a fi sh, squirting each other with water guns, or throwing a pie in the CEO’s face. A problem with a number of these ‘fun’ books is that they do not defi ne what fun is before letting the dogs loose. Rule number one is to clearly explain to the employees what fun is and what it is not.