Employment Matters – December 2009

Christmas parties: to have or not to have?

It’s that time of year again. The decorations are up, the cards have been sent and the presents are wrapped (well nearly!). Ordinarily, Christmas party celebrations would be in full swing, however, this year has a different feel.  Businesses across the country are facing the dilemma of what to do for the Christmas party.  Lavish ‘dos’ with champagne and expensive food seem inappropriate in the current climate, but, with morale perhaps a bit low, employers are conscious to reward staff for their hard work in a difficult year.  
 

Many of the publically owned high street banks are cancelling their Christmas parties and investment banks are following suit. A Lloyd’s spokesperson has confirmed that a ‘prudent’ approach would be taken towards its Christmas parties. However, the Chartered Management Institute has carried out a Christmas party survey and found that two thirds of managers believe that Christmas parties are important to improve employee engagement. The results highlight that managers are conscious of the need for responsible reward and celebration. When asked about public perceptions, 58 per cent agreed that an expensive party could damage their business’s reputation. The survey showed that in the current climate half believe that a ‘team lunch is better than a firmwide party’.

Many companies are still holding a Christmas party but cutting back significantly on expenditure. Low key staff lunches or inexpensive Christmas parties seem to be the way forward. With the economic climate looking brighter for 2010, employers are increasingly aware of the need to retain quality staff and a gesture at Christmas is sensible.

The golden rules
Presuming you are happy to go ahead with some form of celebration, it is important to remember some golden rules. Mixed with a good dose of alcohol, the office party can turn out to be an employer’s nightmare with nothing but New Year blues, allegations of sexual harassment, and investigatory and disciplinary hearings for violence and other unacceptable conduct to look forward to.  However, with some thought and planning, it is possible to reduce the risk of trouble arising at Christmas parties, without limiting the fun.

 
• Employers should remember that they have an overriding duty to safeguard the welfare of all their staff.  While is it true to say that what employees get up to outside the workplace is their own affair, a Christmas party is more than likely to be regarded as work related and, as such, employers can be vicariously liable for their employee’s actions. Employers should take the step of setting out beforehand what is deemed acceptable behaviour and make it clear that a breach of the rules will be treated as misconduct and dealt with through the companies’ disciplinary procedures. 

• Health and safety rules should not simply go out the window in the midst of the festive fun.  For economical reasons, many Christmas parties may be held in the office and, as such, it may be sensible to make certain areas out of bounds to help remove any obvious temptations for mischief. The photocopying room is certainly an area to close off!

• Sexual harassment and other forms of discrimination are an obvious risk at the office Christmas party.  The excitement of the season mingled with excess quantities of alcohol can lead to unwanted advances, with consequent employment claims.  It might just be a look, a touch or an innuendo, but if the recipient feels threatened it could amount to sexual harassment and employers can be found to be vicariously liable. Employers will need to show that they took all reasonably practicable steps to prevent sexual harassment taking place.  This means a clearly communicated policy on sexual harassment to all employees emphasising that unwanted sexual advances are inappropriate and unacceptable. All complaints of sexual harassment must be taken seriously, and investigated promptly, in accordance with your normal procedures. 

• Remember that you may well have a diverse workforce, with many cultural and religious beliefs. Christmas is a Christian celebration and, as such, employees should not be pressurised to attend Christmas parties if they do not want to on religious grounds. Also, where the event is out of hours, remember that some employees will have family responsibilities that may prevent them from attending. 

• Unsurprisingly, sickness absence increases rapidly in December.  Flu and the common cold are at a high and ailments from over-indulgence are somewhat inevitable. It is advisable to make sure your policy on absence is clear. Make sure employees are fully aware of the policy so they are left in no doubt that disciplinary action will be taken if they abuse this. If employees ring in sick after a Christmas party and you suspect they are ‘pulling a sickie’ it is important to investigate the reasons for their absence and only take disciplinary action if you have reasonable grounds to believe that the sickness absence was not genuine. Knowing that return to work interviews will be held and absence management procedures pursued are effective tools to discourage most ‘sickies’.

The Chartered Institute of Personnel Development (CIPD) has recently carried out a survey of 2000 employees and reveals that one in ten workers know of someone from their organisation who has either been disciplined or dismissed for inappropriate behaviour at the staff Christmas party. Over a quarter said that the reason for the disciplinary action or dismissal was fighting and one-fifth said that threatening behaviour was to blame. With tensions possibly running higher this year than others, this is an area for employers to watch. Limiting alcohol, enforcing policies and communicating clearly to staff what is acceptable behaviour are all sensible steps. 

We wish you a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year
With the lecture over on the dos and don’ts of Christmas parties, it is sensible to focus on the improved market for 2010. Employees are an essential asset to any business and shouldn’t be overlooked, with the property market looking more prosperous and the stock marketing slowly but surely improving, businesses need to ensure that key staff are retained. With markets improving, employee turnover will inevitably rise and low-cost Christmas parties are a way of encouraging loyalty, incentivising employees and thanking them for their efforts in a difficult year. As the well known saying goes, ‘it is the thought that counts’ and a Christmas celebration with a focus on thanking staff may be just the ticket. 

If you have any queries or require any more detailed advice on any employment matter, please speak to your usual Cobbetts contact or:

Judith Watson

0845 165 5205