Michael is back as regional manager of the Dunder Mifflin Scranton branch and announces that Pam and Ryan have joined the sales team with their clients from the Michael Scott Paper Company. Dwight, Andy, Phyllis, and Stanley are upset about this as most of their clients were ones that Michael stole from them, and are additionally upset about Michael still treating Pam and Ryan with more respect. This is based on Michael’s belief this his paper company still operates within the branch, but also out of Pam and Ryan being the ones who went with him to start up his company.

Dwight calls a meeting in the warehouse with the salespeople, minus Pam and Ryan, to think of a way to get their clients back. Jim, trying to remain impartial, informs Michael of the potential mutiny and heads to the break room to play board games with Creed until the conflict is resolved. When Dwight, Andy, Phyllis, and Stanley come back from the warehouse, Michael asks where they have been, to which they respond they were out to lunch. Michael, Pam, and Ryan call their bluff by eating the lunches they brought with them in front of them. Things take a turn for the worse when Dwight interrupts a sales call with Ryan, causing him to lose the client. Michael steps in and demands an apology, but Dwight, Andy, Phyllis, and Stanley threaten to quit and start their own paper company. When Michael calls their bluff again, Phyllis breaks down and says that they were the real victims of Michael’s company, not corporate, and that they were hurt since Michael had treated them like a family and then turned on them. Michael is taken aback by her words.

Meanwhile, it is Casual Friday and most people dress too loosely at the office. Angela complains to Toby about Oscar wearing sandals to work and having to look at his feet. Meredith disgusts the rest of employees by wearing a very short dress without any underwear, thus exposing herself to the rest of the office. Toby calls a meeting with everyone regarding Casual Friday. When Dwight tries to take charge of the meeting, Toby is finally stern with him and cancels Casual Friday, much to everyone’s disappointment; this is the first time in which he actually enforces office policy.

Michael calls a meeting with Dwight, Andy, Phyllis, and Stanley to give them a formal apology, but they do not accept it since all they want is their clients back. Michael finally gives in to giving back their clients. In doing so, however, there are not enough clients to keep both Pam and Ryan on the sales team, leaving Michael to decide which one to keep. He talks it over with Jim, who suggests Pam would be better suited, while Michael thinks Ryan should get it. When Michael calls a meeting with Pam after meeting with Ryan, he tells her that she did not get the sales job. Pam is disappointed, but Michael starts laughing and tells her that she did get it, having offered Ryan a temp position again. Pam laughs it off and tells him he should stop with the “fake-firing” joke. Michael then decides to pull the joke on the new receptionist, Erin.

“Casual Friday” is the twenty-sixth episode of the fifth season television series The Office and the show’s ninety-eighth overall. The episode aired in the United States on April 30, 2009, on NBC at 9 PM EDT.

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