The finding that Christmas is cancelled comes from a survey of
3,500 businesses by Peninsula Business Services Ltd which also
found that 89% of employers have received a harassment complaint
after a work party. This blow to staff morale was surely compounded
by reports like Wal-Mart's
battle against office romance.
But employers and employees can enjoy an office party.
And the secret to coping with the less savoury traditions
associated with these events is good preparation.
Here are OUT-LAW's tips.
1. The invite
Do not insist that all staff attend the Christmas party.
Christmas is a Christian holiday – so do not pressure someone to
attend if they don't want to on the grounds of religion. If the
event is out of hours, also remember that some people have family
responsibilities that may prevent attendance.
If telling people to bring a Secret Santa gift, ask that all
gifts are inoffensive. Some gifts – notably underwear and sex toys
– have sparked complaints in the past.
2. Decorating the office
Use a stepladder to put up decorations – not a swivel chair,
warned the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and the Royal Society
for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) recently. Don't hang
the tinsel on computers or other sources of heat; and don't
decorate emergency exit signs.
These organisations also warn that your insurance may not cover
damage caused by untested electrical equipment – so switch off
those tree lights before going home.
There are other festive hazards, according to the TUC/RoSPA
guidance. Party balloons can kill: around 3.6 million people in
Britain suffer from some degree of latex allergy. And over 1,000
people were injured by Christmas trees in 2002, so make sure they
are secure and won't be knocked over by people passing by or
pulling cables.
Some other tips: keep fresh party food in a fridge before the
party; use paper cups, not glasses; move computers out of range of
spillages; and avoid indoor fireworks, flaming puddings, candles
and smoking.
3. Free booze
Employers providing free drink or putting a credit card behind a
bar should be careful. In one case, three emplyees of the Whitbread
Beer Company got drunk and had a fight after a seminar on improving
behavioural skills. They successfully argued that their resulting
dismissals were unfair. A relevant factor was that the employer had
provided a free bar – and thus condoned their behaviour.
4. Age limits
Keep an eye out for the office junior. Bosses cannot allow
under-18s to drink. In an extreme example, an employer was found
responsible for the death of a girl at the office party due to
alcohol poisoning.
5. Tables and photocopiers
Dancing on desks is likely to cause damage to property and
people. It amounts to misuse of company property – as does the
photocopying of body parts and other leisure activities on such
surfaces. Make it clear that such activities will not be tolerated
or that certain parts of the office are out of bounds on the night
of the party.
6. Don't ignore drugs in the loos
Under the Misuse of Drugs Act of 1971, it is an offence for an
employer to knowingly permit or even to ignore the use, production
or supply of any controlled drugs, from cannabis to cocaine, taking
place on their premises. There may also be a breach of the Health
and Safety at Work Act 1974.
7. Misguided by mistletoe
Your staff policies on bullying and harassment and
discrimination still apply at the office party. Just make sure
everyone knows this and knows what they are.
This is one reason why mistletoe is dangerous. A survey reported
by ContractorUK found that, while 80% of women would laugh off a
pass made by a male co-worker, boss or client, 13% would lodge a
complaint.
An extreme example of such misbehaviour involved a man telling a
female colleague that she "needed a good man," adding that he would
like to try her out in bed. At the Christmas party, the man pulled
her dress down and made disparaging comments. A claim of sexual
harassment succeeded and an award of £10,000 was made for injury to
feelings.
The laws on discrimination apply at the office party regardless
of location. So when one man told a female colleague, "f******
hell, you look worth one" at an after-work leaving event taking
place in a local pub, the tribunal had little difficulty in ruling
that it was in the course of employment and therefore
discriminatory.
Employers can find that they end up paying for unwanted advances
between co-workers if tribunals characterise the behaviour as
evidence of a culture of vicimisation or harassment.
Sometimes misconduct will be clear. In one case, a senior
manager drank heavily at the Christmas party, assaulted some
colleagues and told the director to "stick his f****** job up his
arse." He was thrown out and broke the window of a pensioner's
house. Perhaps unsurprisingly, his claim for unfair dismissal
failed. But don't overlook the behaviour of others. For example, if
your party budget extends to an after-dinner speaker, choose
carefully. When Bernard Manning performed for one company, the host
hotel was deemed liable for the offence caused to Afro-Caribbean
waitresses by Manning's racist jokes.
8. Manage expectations
Alcohol makes people say silly things so always avoid staff
performance reviews during the office party. In one case, an
employee claimed his boss had promised him a higher salary "in due
course" during a chat at the Christmas party. His pay remained
static so he quit and claimed constructive dismissal. The employer
won the case but only because the nature of the promise was vague.
It was a lucky escape: a promise made at a Christmas party is still
a promise.
A similar issue is the Christmas bonus. If you have paid a
discretionary Chritmas bonus for several years, staff can argue
that it has become contractual through custom and practice. So if
times have been tough and you can't afford to pay a bonus this
year, tell staff why you feel unable to pay it and try to agree a
solution. Acas suggests that you could offer to pay a proportion of
the bonus or stagger payments in the next few months; or you could
offer to pay the drinks bill at the Christmas party.
9. Getting home
If a member of staff has clearly drunk too much at the office
Christmas party and plans to drive home, the employer needs to take
responsibility. Acas points out that he has a duty of care to his
employees – and because it's the company's party, he must think
about travel arrangements. Consider ending the party before public
transport stops running; or provide the phone numbers for local cab
companies and encourage staff to use them.
10. The morning after
If the party is mid-week and people are expected in work the
next day, Acas recommends that you provide plenty of non-alcoholic
drinks and food. Before the party, ensure that all staff know that
disciplinary action could be taken if they fail to turn up for work
because of over-indulging.
Liquid lunches are another risk. If there is urgent work to be
done, disciplinary action may be appropriate if staff are late back
to the office or intoxicated. But bosses must be careful: a history
of festive tolerance could be used as evidence that disciplinary
action against an individual is unfair.
Also ensure that proper procedures are followed. At an Ardyne
Scaffolding Christmas lunch in the early 1990s, a worker returned a
few hours late to work after drinking too much. It was the day
before the Christmas holiday was due to begin. Ardyne Scaffolding
saw this as gross misconduct but decided to tell the employee after
he had sobered up – which meant waiting until after the Christmas
holiday. The worker learned of the dismissal through gossip during
the holiday and claimed unfair dismissal. He won. The Employment
Appeals Tribunal decided that, while it was reasonable to wait for
Mr Rennie to sober up before being told that he would be dismissed,
and while the holiday had complicated matters, this did not justify
a failure to follow a clear procedure.
