This guy sounds like he has other issues but anyone who ever had the misfortune of working in a corporate cubical hell knows these birthday parties are ridiculous. If companies want to do something nice to help moral and team building they would pick up the tab for department happy hours.
I kept my birthday concealed from my company’s management for a number of years because all that I simply wanted to do was go have a nice quiet lunch and a beer at the nearby Montana’s and not be bothered with a celebration and cake (which I likely would not be able to eat due to my dairy allergy).
I recall reading on an earlier discussion of this story someone’s comment that this sort of thing is so typical when a busybody HR type (usually a woman) gets involved with this sort of stuff and that they often absolutely have to have these parties, etc which can really be that sort of a bother after a while. I know that would have someone like the late Paul Lynde snapping at me “You’re no fun”, lol.
What I hated more than B-day parties was the donation requests to donate for a gift that that a coworker would send around for their 3rd cousin’s upcoming wedding or similar nonsense.