Employers and employees alike should be wary of their behaviour in the festive period, as dismissals and misconduct see a rise around this time of year.
London-based employment law solicitors, Thomas Mansfield, have created an image set to document some of the more common behavioural problems seen at or after Christmas parties. The aim of the image set is to remind employers that such social events, whilst a great opportunity for staff to enjoy themselves, may also bring with them potential misconduct and even dismissals
Thomas Mansfield urge employers to strike a balance between dampening the atmosphere and ‘spoiling the fun’ of what should be a great team-building event, and letting employees run wild in a night of excess and behaviour that might otherwise lead to disciplinary action.
Meredith Hurst, partner at Thomas Mansfield, adds, “An important factor for employers is to gently remind staff in advance of any social event – particularly those occurring off site – that even though this is a social event they still represent the employer. It would be prudent to remind them of the existence of drug and alcohol misuse policies, as well as any key points in their contract, without putting a dampener on the whole thing.
“I’ve seen cases where employees thought that their actions would be taken as a bit of light-hearted flirtatiousness, but actually turned into quite serious sexual harassment claims. In fact, a one-off comment can be sufficient to amount to sexual harassment.”
HR Professional, Renae Jackson, added, “When companies host a Christmas party, they hope it will be incident-free and full of festive cheer. Unfortunately, underlying office tensions –and sometimes amorous intentions – don’t always mix well with alcohol. In the workplace, it’s far easier to set the parameters of acceptable behaviour; it’s whether colleagues remember (or care) about these proprieties after reaching for a drink.
“There’s a common misconception that companies are not liable for events outside the workplace. Unfortunately this isn’t true – and in any case, these things can still linger on past Monday back in the office.”
Employers and managers themselves should also be wary of their own conduct at Christmas social events, as it can land them in hot water if regulations are forgotten in the heat of the moment. For example, firing an employee on the spot for misconduct can lead to an unfair dismissal claim based on the failure to follow procedure.
Similarly, simply being drunk is also not a valid excuse for inappropriate behaviour, and from a boss’ perspective may cause some sticky situations. Meredith Hurst explains, “If an employer has dismissed in haste or in a drunken haze and realised the error of his ways the next day, then it is not always open to an employer to retract the dismissal.
“The reason is that a dismissal cannot be unilaterally withdrawn – mutual agreement is required and, in such a case, an employee may feel that the relationship is beyond repair.”
In the vast majority of cases, trusting staff to act in the right way can reap its own rewards. Most Christmas parties pass by with a few colleagues mildly embarrassing themselves and ending up with severe hangovers. Make sure you’re at least in the embarrassed but still employed camp this Christmas.