Why Riker Is Actually A Terrible Boss
In Star Trek: The Next Generation, Riker is typically portrayed as a fun-loving Starfleet officer. He loves playing jazz, chasing ladies, and bluffing his way to victory in poker. Most fans think they’d love to have such a laidback guy as a boss, but the two-part episode “Chain of Command” reveals a startling secret: Riker would, in fact, be a terrible boss.
That’s because we see him go out of the way to fight an order from temporary Captain Jellico that would have ensured each crew member had to work less.
We’re so used to taking his side in this Star Trek episode that it’s easy to miss the significance of Riker pushing back against one of Jellico’s best suggestions.
When Jellico assumes command, Riker and Star Trek fans alike get some serious culture shock. Compared to Captain Picard, Jellico is gruff, angry, and downright unlikeable. We’re primed to see him as something of an antagonist, and in his many clashes with Riker, it’s usually very easy to take the commander’s side against this brusque new captain,
We’re so used to taking his side in this Star Trek episode that it’s easy to miss the significance of Riker pushing back against one of Jellico’s best suggestions. Early into his command of the Enterprise, Jellico orders Riker to switch the shift from its standard three-shift rotation to a four-shift rotation. Later, when Jellico mentions “delta shift,” Riker tells him there is no such shift because he hasn’t switched the crew to a four-shift rotation as ordered.
The two-part episode “Chain of Command” reveals a startling secret: Riker would, in fact, be a terrible boss.
The commander does explain that he hasn’t followed those orders because his senior officers claim it will lead to “significant personnel problems.” He never explains what those problems are, but that’s not the real purpose of this scene. The real purpose is to once again get Star Trek fans to root for Riker as he tries to maintain the ship’s status quo in the face of an outsider who wants to shake things up.
However, once you do the math, it’s almost impossible to take Riker’s side in this matter. Under a three-shift rotation, each crew member would work eight hours a day. Under a four-shift rotation, they’d only have to work six hours a day.
Can you even imagine getting a new boss who wants to make sure you work less and having one of your old supervisors insist that you need to work 25 percent more each day because he and his buddies don’t want to put in the work to make the change?
The further context of this Star Trek: The Next Generation episode somehow makes Riker look even worse when it comes to this fight over the four-shift rotation. In the ep, the crew must deal with Cardassians who have captured Captain Picard and are very likely to capture Minos Korva, a Federation planet with great strategic value.
The more we rewatch the episode in question, the more it seems Riker and his closest friends didn’t want to put in a little extra work to help over 900 crewmembers work fewer hours per day.
By having the crew work fewer hours each day during this mission, Jellico can ensure that everyone has enough rest, and that’s especially important when he starts running battle drills to make sure everyone is ready for potential combat.
In the episode, the only potential downside to this plan is those alleged personnel problems, but as numerous Star Trek fans have pointed out over the years, it’s insane to think that a super-advanced 24th-century onboard computer wouldn’t make rescheduling very easy.
The more we rewatch the episode in question, the more it seems Riker and his closest friends didn’t want to put in a little extra work to help over 900 crewmembers work fewer hours per day. Forget the Romulans and the Borg, Commander Riker…the biggest threat you need to worry about is your employees unionizing because you’re such a terrible boss.
