{"id":3332,"date":"2017-11-15T09:35:14","date_gmt":"2017-11-14T23:35:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wiseworkplacetraining.com.au\/2021\/09\/11\/workplace-party-pitfalls-and-perils-a-christmas-story\/"},"modified":"2017-11-15T09:35:14","modified_gmt":"2017-11-14T23:35:14","slug":"workplace-party-pitfalls-and-perils-a-christmas-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wiseworkplace.com.au\/2017\/11\/workplace-party-pitfalls-and-perils-a-christmas-story\/","title":{"rendered":"Workplace Party Pitfalls and Perils (A Christmas Story)"},"content":{"rendered":"
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At a time when workers increasingly work remotely, communicate online or use hot desks, the annual staff Christmas party is a valuable opportunity to get everyone interacting face to face.<\/p>\n
A Christmas party is also a good way of getting staff who rarely see one another during the working week to meet, to reward staff for hard work, to celebrate the success of the past year, and to motivate employees for the year ahead.<\/p>\n
At the same time, it is essential that reasonable steps are taken to manage the risk to the organisation’s reputation, to provide an environment free from discrimination and to protect the health and safety of all involved in the Christmas party.<\/p>\n
Small wonder then that there is a fine line between potentially permitting a situation to get out of hand, and being so risk averse that you kill the fun of the party altogether.<\/p>\n
Here’s a quick guide for employees and employers on how to avoid the potential perils of the work Christmas party.<\/p>\n
First, in order for a business to be legally liable for events that occur at a Christmas party, it must be considered a ‘workplace event’. However, this can extend beyond something which is specifically labelled an ‘end of year function’ or ‘Christmas party’, and can include something as informal as a picnic or a sporting activity – or even an unplanned and spontaneous event like an after party.<\/p>\n
The factors that determine whether something is defined as a workplace event include:<\/p>\n
Some notable mishaps from past Christmas parties include:<\/p>\n
There are a few important things employees should be aware of:<\/p>\n
Instead of overdoing the alcohol, use the party as an opportunity to network with other people in your organisation whom you may not know as well. The Christmas party should be an opportunity to have fun and form more personal connections, with a view to improving your overall work life.<\/p>\n
In order to minimise any potential pitfalls from the Christmas party, employers need to know a few key things:<\/p>\n
If something does go wrong at the Christmas party, it is important for employers to deal with potential misconduct swiftly and fairly in order to minimise any fallout. WISE Workplace can assist with a professional and unbiased workplace investigation.<\/p>\n