All legal activity you can get sacked for after your work Christmas party
Christmas Day is officially two weeks away and that means one thing. It's finally time for the work Christmas parties.
It's a tale as old as time that after a year of hard work, we all head to our local bar or a booked venue for a few tipples with people we hold awkward small talk with during the week, with things usually getting a little messy depending on just how many free drinks are on offer.
While we'd all love for it to be a carefree atmosphere where you can kick back with some of your favourite colleagues, the reality is that bosses will be keeping a close eye on your behaviour throughout the night, and a few bad decisions could just see you end up losing your job.
Apart from the obvious things you shouldn't be doing in the workplace, like murdering a colleague or attending a Coldplay concert as the head of HR with your married boss, there are plenty of reasons why you can find yourself without a pay cheque when Christmas is around the corner.
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One woman on TikTok shared a warning after she was sacked following her work Christmas party, and if you're not careful, you might be waking up to a similar message from your office superiors after a few too many sherries.
Fortunately, we've got you covered with all the reasons why you could lose your job, so as long as you avoid these, the worst thing you'll wake up with is some hangxiety.
Employment law specialist Alexandra Bullmore explained exactly why the normal workplace rules still apply, even when you're necking shots with the CEO and the cleaning staff.
Gross misconduct
"Employers will potentially be liable for anything an employee does at the Christmas party," Bullmore explained.
She continued: "The usual work policies and procedures, including those to do with gross misconduct, will apply at any work organised Christmas party.
"Employees should be very careful to ensure that they do not do anything that may mean disciplinary action is brought against them."
So, no matter how many drinks you've had, please try and avoid abusing your colleagues, throwing photocopiers down the stairs or general insubordination towards your superiors.
Drunken behaviour
Owen John, partner at law firm Darwin Gray, has confirmed that even a free bar isn't insurance for poor behaviour, and doing any of the drunken stuff you usually do after a dozen daiquiris isn't going to slide on this occasion.
"If the employee commits an act of gross misconduct an employer can discipline that employee and, if it's sufficiently serious, potentially dismiss that employee. The fact that the employer put on a free bar will be no defence for the employee," he said.
If you want to avoid getting too drunk but still want to take advantage of the free drinks, it might be worth trying the new 'zebra striping' drinking hack that all the kids are talking about.
Fighting
There's probably someone in the office that you'd love to have a little scrap with but just because you're not in the office doesn't mean you can get away with it, as it's likely to be classed as gross misconduct.
"Although fighting will most likely justify dismissal it is imperative that employers carry out as thorough investigation as possible," Sarah Austin of Cardiff and London-based firm Capital Law said.
"In recent cases a failure to identify who 'threw the first punch' and resulting inconsistent treatment of those involved has led to findings of unfair dismissal."
So, if you do have a few too many drinks at your upcoming work Christmas party, maybe just embarrass yourself with a poor rendition of 'Last Christmas' and then head home before doing anything you seriously regret.
James Moorhouse