dancing days are here again ......

Good Day All. Here goes.... like many of you, we have baby boomers retiring left and right. It has become a practice for the peers of the retiree to raise funds (voluntarily) through luncheons and other activities for a retirement banquet. The luncheons for the most part take place during the noon hour on a work day, minimal company time is used to prepare and clean up.

Well, management is reaching out and touching how these banquets occur by saying there will be no alcohol or dancing? Therein lies the problemo... employees are in an uproar and say the company has no right to dictate the activity since no company funds are being used for the event. Other than fundraisers held on company premises, this is true.

As HR Manager I've been asked to draft a policy on this subject. Yea, I'm management too, but by pointing out that there is no policy on this matter, I put my foot in my mouth cause now they/we want one.

Anybody have any ideas, better yet a policy....

Comments

  • 13 Comments sorted by Votes Date Added
  • I can understand the no alcohol part, just not a great idea to allow ees to drink on a work day. Especially if you are in a manufacturing or distribution field that requires operating machinery.

    As far as the dancing, I would personally not allow it. It is going on during a work day, albeit on a break, and you run the risk of things getting out of hand. Someone could be offended, someone could touch someone inappropriately, etc.

    I also think the company has a right to get involved if the banquet is on company property. The company has to think about any liability. Someone could get hurt while dancing, could have to much to drink and slip on the way back to work, etc.

    If the ees want to drink and dance, have it after hours, away from work. That would give them more control over what occurs. I would also limit the time and resources ees use to plan the banquets, etc. at work.
  • Sorry if I wasn't clear but the banquets occur off company time/premises.... the only thing that occurs using company resources are the fund raising luncheons on a work day. There is no alcohol or dancing on company time. That's what makes this difficult for employees.... the company wanting to control the off duty/premises retirement banquet.
  • Am I missing something? What policy could you possibly write that would govern private banquets? How could the company prevent alcohol and dancing at a party they are not sponsoring, financing or hosting?


  • Companies can't. However, they can have a policy about working under the influence of alcohol. Therefore, if the rule exists, the employer would have the right to test employees coming back from a luncheon where alcohol was served.
  • I didn't get out of the post that the banquets are luncheons -- just the fundraising part happens during lunch. I would guess the banquets are in the evenings?
  • Take your foot out of your mouth and say firmly to other members of management that you have no right or obligation to attempt to control what I read as social functions only related to the company by the fact that the participants are employees. If a half dozen of your managers get together to play golf on Saturday, are you going to say that they can't stop for a drink afterwards?
  • My response goes to the fundraiser event on company property. Are you a union facility? Does your company have a "no solicitation/distribution policy"? How does your company handle other "fundraisers"; i.e. selling girl scout cookies, sponsoring someone in a 5K charitable run, etc.

    My kneejerk reaction is that the fundraiser events on company property should cease. Bear in mind, though, I don't have all the facts to make a truly informed comment.
  • [font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 08-12-05 AT 08:24AM (CST)[/font][br][br]I agree with the employer. People who dance will surely go straight to hell. The gyration of bodies will lead to all sorts of unhealthy and unclean activities. There is no room for discussion on this.

    But oooonnnn the other hand, there's a golden band, no wait, that was Randy Travis. On the other hand, what kind of people are at the wheel of this business who would even have a fleeting thought to impose a 'no dancing' rule on employees? I agree with the gentleman who suggested you get your foot out of your mouth (kindly spoken I assume) and tell management that neither you nor he has any right whatsoever to attempt to govern the behavior of employees after work, off the premises.

    No doubt lots of babies have been conceived following dancing. But, more than a few have also been conceived following what began as an innocent hug at a company going away party in the conference room.

    So, the answer may to ban all communication of every sort between the sexes.


  • [font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 08-12-05 AT 09:52AM (CST)[/font][br][br]Well the gyrating bodies would be okay Don, but you know it is always the ugly ones who can't dance out there gyrating!!! And the should go straight to hell.

    If the employess are coming back to work, then no drinking, as for the dancing that is none of managements damn business.

    My $0.02 worth.
    The Balloonman
  • Unless the company is sponsoring/paying for these retirement events, then they should back off.

    We have these after work, off-site and don't restrict employees from drinking. Since they pay for their own alcohol, they restrict themselves. They can either attend or not.

    The company is off base here.
  • When they say "dancing" is that code for something more intimate? Anyway, If I were you guys I'd sever ALL connections with the company in regard to these activities just to get them off your back. Find another venue for your fund raising. Would that be so hard?
  • I once worked for a law firm that 'sanitized' such events by not permitting fund-raising on company time or at company facilites; the event was held "off-campus" and the arrangements were made by employees acting in their personal capacities as co-workers, not management. There was no formal announcement of the event and firm resources were not used to promote the event. The event was not held during working hours. Unfortunately, none of these precautions prevented a complaint to HR regarding the inappropriate overture of one employee to another employee at the party. Since these two attendees had to work with each other, one of them felt they could no longer work with the other because it made her feel 'harassed'.

    Hence, the games began and we were not insulated from the problem, according to the EEOC.

    Run, run as far and as fast as you can from any involvement in this furball!!!
  • Yeah, but that situation could have occurred if the folks from that department met for a few beers every Friday night after work. Would you advocate establishing a policy that would not allow employees to interact with each other on or off the job?
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