It has been reported in the news that employers are being encouraged to cut down on the supply of alcohol at work parties. There is growing concern about how individuals behave towards each other at work and it is inevitably the case that where alcohol is consumed, there is a greater risk of inappropriate behaviour happening.
There is a culture within some organisations and industries in which it is seen entirely acceptable and commonplace to consume large quantities of alcohol. In fact, some people may feel pressured into drinking alcohol at such events even if they might prefer not to do so.
The latest warning comes from the Chartered Management Institute (CMI), which released the results of a new poll, in which it was suggested that one third of managers had seen harassment or inappropriate behaviour at work parties. The report says that women are more likely than men to say that they have witnessed this kind of behaviour.
Mental health perspective
Whenever these kinds of reports are publicised, there is often a counter-accusation that ‘killjoys’ are trying to take all the fun out of work events. The latest report seems to focus more upon ensuring that managers act responsibly at such events and try to ensure that their team members do not become intoxicated. Where there is inappropriate behaviour, it clearly needs to be stamped out rather than being tolerated.
The concept of having social events at work is something that is often seen as positive from a teambuilding and mental health well-being perspective. There is certainly no suggestion that this should be discouraged. There is also no suggestion that alcohol should be banned altogether from all work events. What is being recommended is that employers are more cautious about supplying free alcohol to their staff and that they try to move away from a culture where it is the expectation of staff members to drink more alcohol than they would be comfortable drinking.
The risk to employers and staff members of making unacceptable comments or behaving inappropriately under the influence of alcohol is considerable. Where discriminatory conduct occurs, it can lead to claims for harassment under the Equality Act 2010, under which employees can bring their claims against the individual perpetrators, as well as the employer. Awards for injury to feelings can sometimes be as much is £11,000 even for just single one-off comments or actions. Where there is a pattern of behaviour, the awards could be substantially higher.