One of the mysteries of the English language finally explained.
Definition of rond de cuir in English:
rond de cuir
noun
1In France: a bureaucrat; a person who works at a desk, an office worker; (also) bureaucrats or office workers collectively.
2A round leather cushion, traditionally used on office chairs in France.
Origin
Late 19th century; earliest use found in Imperial & Asiatic Quarterly Review. From French rond de cuir round leather cushion, (depreciatively) bureaucrat from rond round object + de + cuir leather.