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Do’s and don’ts for throwing a safe holiday party

Do’s

• Ensure that all people serving drinks are bartenders licensed by the Oregon Liquor Control Commission and that they understand they are to follow state liquor laws.
• Stop serving liquor an hour before the event ends, and provide coffee, water and other nonalcoholic beverages.
• Hold the gift exchange or award ceremony portion at the end of the event, enticing people to stay after alcohol service ends.
• Ensure that managers and supervisors know they are on duty throughout the event and are responsible for maintaining control.
• Invite spouses and kids to create a family atmosphere.

Don’ts

• Don’t use drink tickets unless they include names and are being checked by the bartender.
• Don’t serve eggnog, rum punch, jungle juice or other punch-style mixed drinks that have indeterminate amounts of alcohol in each serving.
• Don’t throw the party late at night or on a weekend.
• Don’t let employees linger, even if the event is at a bar or restaurant.

With mistletoe, eggnog and ugly sweaters, there is no other time of the year in the business world quite like the holiday season.

But while off-site, after-hours holiday parties can be an effective way to thank employees for their hard work throughout the year, they also can expose employers to a lot of liability.

Rather than toss the tradition, local employment lawyers and human resource experts say employers can take proactive steps to ensure compliance by employees and mitigate a company’s responsibility for issues that might arise.

“It’s a real problem,” said Rich Meneghello, a managing partner with law firm Fisher & Phillips LLP. “I see it every year: Too much alcohol gets consumed at a party and someone either says or does something that gets them, and the company they work for, in trouble.”

Sexual harassment and discrimination are the most common work-party cases that Meneghello hears about.

Allegations of assault, liquor liability and negligence are rarer, but they do happen, he said. A recent lawsuit filed in Multnomah County Circuit Court falls into that category.

The lawsuit, filed last week by Ashley Schutz, stemmed from an incident that occurred after she attended a December 2008 work-related event thrown by her then-employer, Portland-based O’Brien Constructors. Schutz is suing O’Brien Constructors, Southwest Portland restaurant La Costita and her then-supervisor Keeley O’Brien for $18.74 million, claiming personal injuries, negligence and liquor liability.

According to the suit, after she had missed several other work events, Schutz joined O’Brien and a handful of coworkers on an after-work trip to La Costita for drinks and team-building. After nearly four hours of drinking, Schutz drove her car from the restaurant. She eventually began driving against the flow of traffic on Interstate 5. Schutz hit an oncoming vehicle and was left paralyzed. She had a blood alcohol level three times the .08 legal limit.

In the suit, Schutz claims she felt obligated to drink with O’Brien in order to retain her position with the company and be eligible for possible promotions. The suit also alleges that some of the drinks Schutz consumed were served to her by bartenders who knew she was intoxicated. Those drinks, according to the suit, were consumed “involuntarily” by Schutz.

“It’s a really rare case when stuff like that happens,” Meneghello said. “But at the same time, it can happen.”

Steve Bush, an attorney who focuses on corporate and liquor law with Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt, agrees. And while there is no clear-cut way to avoid lawsuits such as the one against O’Brien Contractors, Bush said employers can adopt some simple steps as standard pre-party protocol.

“One of the easiest and most efficient things you can do is send an e-mail or memo out along with the invitation to the party stating that all the same rules at work apply at the party, even if it’s not at work,” he said. “You can even include something about drinking too much, and drinking and driving not being tolerated.”

Meneghello suggests requiring employees to sign the memo or e-mail before allowing them to attend the party. Signed statements can help significantly in building a case, Meneghello said.

The scheduling and guest list also can play big roles in conduct at the event, according to both attorneys. When parties take place on a day in the first half of the week, and earlier in the evening, it’s less likely that excessive alcohol will be consumed, they said.

Other ways to dissuade employees from overdrinking are to invite spouses and children to parties, and to require managers to assume supervisory roles.

“The more organized the party is, the less likely a problem is going to arise,” said Judy Clark, president of HR Answers Inc., a local human resources solutions firm. “People think that once they step away from work they don’t have to follow the same rules as at work.

“The law doesn’t see it like that.”

The provision of alcoholic drink tickets often is used as a tactic to prevent excessive intoxication, but Bush said that can end up doing more harm than good. Employees who don’t drink may give their tickets to colleagues who do.

Clark suggests including names on drink tickets and ensuring they are checked by the bartender.

“When too much alcohol is consumed, anxieties start to arise and topics tend to turn more personal,” she said. “So if you can keep the consumption to an appropriate level, you will significantly lower your chances of anything happening.”