Few characters get mistreated as badly as Toby Flenderson on The Office. The head of the HR department at Dunder-Mifflin's Scranton office. Toby is a constant source of abuse, insults and is most of the times is being utterly ignored. Most of the hate thrown Toby's way is from manager Michael Scott who treats him like garbage for seemingly no reason.
Toby can be quite a dull guy and he is a bit awkward, but he's also a nice and caring person. Though it does make for some admittedly funny moments, it's hard not to feel bad for Toby for everything he puts up with. Here are some of the times Toby deserved better on The Office.
Workplace Safety
As the HR representative for the office, Toby is responsible for giving the occasional lecture to the team. The topics he has to discuss are usually pretty dull and Toby is not the most engaging public speaker, but he tries to do his best to give his colleagues the information they need.
After Michael gets embarrassed by the warehouse workers for having a much safer work environment, Michael takes it out on Toby. He interrupts Toby's talk constantly and mocks him for being boring while Toby was just trying to make the office a safer place to work.
Guilty Conscience
Toby's life is usually not the most exciting and he rarely has people interested in him. However, Toby briefly became the center of attention when he was selected for the jury of the high-profile Scranton Strangler murder case.
Though Toby was a bit obnoxious about how often he brought up the subject of the trial, his crisis of conscience was real. Toby confesses that though he voted guilty and helped sentence a man to the death penalty, he was having doubts about it and struggling with his choice. Yet no one cares at all.
Painful Divorce
Since Michael is so often the butt of jokes, he seems to take a lot of pleasure in making fun of Toby. But for a man who is mocked so much, Michael should have sympathy. Instead, he is relentless with Toby, often taking things way too far.
Though he tries to keep a positive attitude about it, Toby is divorced and it was apparently a very messy process. Yet Michael often brings up that very personal and painful topic to insult Toby and make him look like a failure.
Beach Day
Being an employee of Dunder-Mifflin seems like a pretty dull existence, but with Michael Scott as the boss, at least the employees get the occasional fun day off. All the employees except for Toby that is.
When Michael organized a fun beach day for the office, the group gets genuinely excited. Even Toby is more livingly than usual, really looking forward to the field trip. However, Michael quickly informs him that he's not coming as he has to stay behind and look after the office all alone.
Christmas Present
You would think that Christmas might make people treat Toby a little better, but you would be wrong. Even the giving of the holiday season does not extend to Toby as far as Michael is concerned.
During the Christmas party, everyone is given their own corporate gift which is a bathrobe. Toby seems particularly happy about the gift. But when Michael learns Holly is coming to the office, he decides to take Toby's robe away and give it to Holly instead. Luckily, Pam gives Toby a robe as a present, but it doesn't really count if it was already his.
Michael's Three Bullets
Though Michael is the main offender when it comes to abusing Toby, the rest of the office isn't often very nice to him either. But you can always count on Michael to take things too far and make everyone feel bad for Toby.
During one of Toby's boring lectures, Michael interrupts and insults him, which gets a laugh from everyone else. Encouraged by this, Michael goes on to say that if Toby, Hitler and Bin Laden were standing in front of him and he had a gun with only two bullets, he'd shoot Toby twice.
Comforting Michael
Despite all the terrible things Michael says to Toby and everything he puts him through, Toby is still willing to help Michael when he is in need. And this always ends up backfiring on Toby.
When Michael is forced to give a very personal deposition to corporate for Jan's wrongful dismissal lawsuit, he ends up getting humiliated in front of everyone. During a lunch break, Toby decides to sit with Michael and try to offer some comforting words, having been through a similar process during his divorce. Michael responds to this kindness by pushing Toby's lunch tray off the table.
Goodbye Toby
After years of his perceived suffering, Michael Scott finally gets his wish as Toby decides to leave Dunder-Mifflin behind. Of course, Michael cannot take his victory in a dignified way and proceeds to make a huge deal about finally getting rid of Toby.
It all begins with a very tense and aggressive exit interview in which Michael insults Toby, gives him mean going-away presents and threatens him when the HR rep tries to talk about the faults of the office. This all leads to a massive party to celebrate the fact that Toby is leaving.
Costa Rica
After Toby leaves the office, he plans to start a new life in Costa Rica. He talks about his plans to take up surfing and live a simple and relaxed life. If there's anyone who deserves that kind of new start, it's Toby Flenderson.
However, things still don't go well for Toby ever after leaving Dunder-Mifflin. We see him in a hospital in Costa Rica. He explains that he broke his neck ziplining on his second day and has been in the hospital ever since.
Welcome Back
If you thought Michael's reaction to Toby leaving was over-the-top, his reaction to Toby's return is even wilder. After seeing his old nemesis back at his desk, Michael proceeds to scream at the top of his lungs like it's the worst thing that has ever happened.
On top of the brutal welcome back, Michael immediately starts concocting a plan to get rid of Toby permanently. He decides to buy drugs and plant them in Toby's desk, framing him. Luckily, the drugs turn out to be a salad and even Michael knows he went too far with that one.