The writer mentions that it occasionally happens to other employees as well and that it happens not every time but "more than 50% of the time" for employee 2. This makes me suspect that it could just be variance that makes it seem as if the phenomenon happens "everytime" for employee 2.

It takes quite a lot of trials to reach 2 SD significance, you'd have to let employee 2 walk past the cubicle at least a hundred times to be sure that there is really anything going on.