It's certainly a parody of office life and its meaninglessness.

first and foremost i think it was an excellent series. i don't normally like Ricky Gervais, but he was excellent as the boss. but in that it was a social satire, it was little different to The Simpsons. it poked fun at society, but we only see it as seditious because we believe that the world can be bettered. i fear that most probably just shrugged their shoulders and said 'Oh well, that's just the way it is'.