Bosses shy away from festive parties

Dec 11 2007 by Karen McLauchlan, Evening Gazette

TEES Valley law firm Latimer Hinks is warning the region’s employers not to fall foul of the law during the office Christmas party season.

Recent research has found many bosses are vetoing the traditional office do to avoid the legal implications that may follow.

Nick Poole, partner at the Darlington firm, has put together a guide to avoiding common legal pitfalls, to help make the office do one to remember for all the right reasons.

Be careful not to breach the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003. Office parties tend to revolve around alcohol and this may offend certain religions. In addition, a party on a Friday night may exclude certain faiths. It is best not to insist that all staff attend.

Ensure catering is suitable for people of all faiths and meets dietary requirements, such as vegetarians or vegans.

A free bar can be a recipe for disaster. Non-alcoholic drinks should be made available also.

Ensure everyone consuming alcohol is over 18.

Sexual harassment is an obvious risk. Harassment policies should be in place and re-enforced to staff to ensure they fully understand that inappropriate comments or behaviour is unacceptable.

An office party is not an appropriate place for a performance review. Do not make promises, particularly under the influence of alcohol, as these may be contractually binding.

Conciliation service ACAS suggests employers have a duty to consider how their employees get home. Consider organising transport.

Warn employees that gossip and photos from the Christmas party appearing on social networking sites such as Facebook or MySpace will be frowned upon, especially if it is detrimental to the company.

Nick said: “Employers are vicariously liable for their employees’ behaviour if it takes place in the course of employment.

“This can include Christmas parties, even if they are held away from the office.

“Harassment cases can be very expensive. At one party, a male colleague pulled down a female worker’s dress and made disparaging comments. In this case £10,000 was awarded in damages against the company for injury to feelings.”

He added: “It is not surprising many bosses are shying away from office parties but with a little thought there is no reason why everyone cannot enjoy a fun night out with colleagues.”