Best TV Show of the Week
Undercover Boss on CBS
By Ally Matteodo
Undercover Boss
on CBS earns the distinction of Best of the Week for the March 13th
episode featuring Rich McClure, President
and CEO of United Van Lines, the nation’s largest moving company. Each week,
Undercover Boss focuses on a different executive from successful, national
companies as they create aliases and research the inner workings of their
businesses in order to root out underlying problems, gain employees'
perspectives, and observe how their policies impact the overarching work place.
Rich McClure goes undercover as Tommy Allen, posing as a contestant in a reality
competition where two people are competing for an open position at the company.
First, McClure journeys to Orlando, Florida where he works with Jimmy, a United
Van operator. He assists in a household move, and is shocked by the amount of physical strength required to move heavy furniture and even the
mattress pads. Next, McClure checks out a United Warehouse facility in
Baltimore, Maryland and stacks inventory with Andrew, the Warehouse Logistics
Manager. Following his stint in Baltimore, McClure heads to Stafford, Virginia
where he works alongside Ruth and Ronald, a husband and wife packer team.
Together, they must pack up an entire house with many fragile items in need of
wrapping. The final stop for McClure is Milwaukee, Wisconsin—worried that he
will be recognized at this location since he gave an award there, he calls in
his wife, Sharon, and tasks her with going undercover. Sharon works with Linda,
the a hard worker who manages the claims from three different
agencies.
McClure learns
several things during his stint undercover. Jimmy explains to McClure that if
an assessor gives an inaccurate estimate of the pounds of materials to be moved
from a house, and he doesn't have enough vans to fit the furniture and other
possessions, he will need to rent another van and pay for it out of his own
pocket. He expresses his frustration at such a situation: “Can you imagine
working a big job like this, and not making a dime?” McClure resolves to fix
this procedure in his company. When Sharon works undercover with Linda in
claims, Linda explains how taxing the job can be to your spirit—people vent to
her or hang up on her all day long regarding claims, and she never seems to be
able to take a vacation because of money worries. To recognize the fabulous
workers of United Van Lines, McClure gives Jimmy $10,000
for his children's education and video chat capabilities for when he’s on the
road; Ronald and Ruth are awarded $5,000 for their first truck and
an all-expense paid trip to Italy; and Linda garners a well-deserved vacation to
Las Vegas and $10,000 to pay for her daughters' weddings. This
program not only showcases the dedication and hard-work of employees to the
boss, it showcases them to us viewers at home as well. The dedicated
employees showcased each week work hard and take pride in a job well-done, and
we learn a little bit about their own dreams and aspirations, as well. In the end, their
superiors take notice of their efforts and reward them for their outstanding
service. In the end, you hope that this program inspires
bosses all over the country to take a closer look at their employees and
recognize their hard work.
Best TV Show
of the Week
The Parents
Television Council -
www.parentstv.org
