It would appear that employers are increasingly cancelling staff Christmas parties because of costs and fear of litigation. According to a survey by Peninsula, more than nine out 10 respondents (93 per cent) cited cost as the prime reason for not organising a party, while 78 per cent of employers said that Christmas parties led to arguments and conflict among members of staff on the night. What is more, less than one-out-four (23%) bosses said they had a trouble-free parties free of conflict, arguments, tension and harassment. Further findings suggest:1) 89 per cent of employers said that someone makes a harassment complaint after the Christmas party
2) 64 per cent of employers have dismissed someone because of their antics at the company Christmas party
3) 77 per cent of bosses claimed that drunken employees approach them to speak their mind only to be faced with apologies from the employee on a Monday morning for their drunken outburst
I can understand that alcohol can make people say and do things they wouldn't otherwise, and that litigation can be an expensive and time consuming process, but there also appears to be a strong hint of conflict avoidance, which has the potential to be much more harmful than any of the above. A balance needs to be struck somewhere and cancelling events that the majority of employees clearly get something from is a bit like a small child throwing all their toys out of the cot.
See Christmas parties fall victim to fear of litigation by Micheal Miller of Personnel Today for more details.
Some work-related podcasts to consider:
The Working Podcast - dedicated to the pain of working
Audio Anarchy - a series of anti-work essays
Radio LabourStart - for global trade union news and campaigning
Voices at Work - labor news, music and interviews with prominent activists, historians, leaders, and educators
The Spark Podcast - the voice of the Electrical Trades Union of Australia (ETU) Southern States Branch: a place where workers around the world can have their say
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