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The Price of Holiday Parties

By Jeffrey S. Klein and Nicholas J. Pappas
December 22, 2006

Now that the holiday season is over, employers may be facing fallout from their holiday parties. Although a review of recent cases asserting social host and workers' compensation liability reveals few reported decisions, there is likely no corresponding reduction in risk, and the increasing number of employers hosting holiday parties in recent years prompts an analysis of the challenges employers face in planning their annual holiday parties. It is not too soon to plan for next year's celebrations, while the experience from this year is fresh. This article discusses illustrative cases and suggests a number of concrete steps employers may wish to consider to reduce injuries and potential liabilities in planning their next holiday parties.

Sexual Harassment

The incidence of sexual innuendoes and jokes, as well as more overt sexually oriented acts, at employer-sponsored holiday parties has been well chronicled. One survey found that a number of women complained that some coworkers viewed office parties as a time when the rules of decent conduct are suspended. John T. Molloy, 'Caution: Office Parties,' The Houston Chronicle, Dec. 23, 1993, at 4.

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