Halloween Office Party
Halloween is being embraced and observed in the workplace as never before. According to Human Resource Management's 2000 Benefits Study, more than one-third of U.S. companies offer some sort of workplace Halloween celebration.
That's good news for people who love the holiday that often gets overlooked in favor of Thanksgiving and Christmas. It's good news for employers looking for new methods of teambuilding. Halloween used to be just another work day in America, with the celebrations occurring after hours. That is changing, however, as employers begin to see the value of bringing Halloween to the office.
Why celebrate Halloween at work?
Perhaps the biggest reason for Halloween's rise to mainstream holiday is the money we spend on it. Halloween today is big business. It is estimated that Americans spend more than $6 billion on Halloween in an averayge year, with the average person spending $36 on Halloween supplies such as Halloween costumes or Halloween candy. Halloween is now the second-largest holiday after Christmas in terms of consumer spending.
Employers, especially those in companies with high demands and expectations, find that Halloween events are a great way to reduce employee stress and inject fun into the workplace. Any company looking to foster a positive company culture would do well to observe Halloween.
If your office doesn't currently observe the holiday, you can help enlighten them. Start by showing this article to your human resources manager. If you have time, volunteer to coordinate the Halloween observance at the office, subject to management's approval, of course. Remind the powers that be that Halloween at the office builds morale and teamwork. Beyond that, Halloween can help managers spot creative and participative talents among employees. By encouraging employees from different departments to share a common activity, the company can actually improve communication and inter-departmental cooperation. All of this gives management another opportunity to find employees with hidden talents in a non-hierarchical setting. In other words, shake things up a bit. You might be surprised by the results.
Bringing Halloween to your office
Treat the planning of your Halloween office party as you would any other corporate event. All the same rules apply:
1) Get management approval. This will give your office Halloween observance an official seal of approval that should increase employee participation. Find out how much money the company is willing to spend on Halloween festivities so you won't get stuck with the bill. Also, find out how much work time you and your helpers can devote to preparations so there is no question later about use of company time. If your plans have management's approval, your Halloween celebration will be seen as a treat rather than a trick.
2) Communicate the plan to everyone. Announce your Halloween festivities in the way you would any other company event. Post it on the bulletin boards and the company intranet. Send out a company-wide e-mail.
3) Recruit helpers. Remember -- this is about teamwork. It's important to include others and minimize the amount of work time you spend decorating the office. Your company's human resources or communications departments are a good place to recruit helpers, but anyone with a desire to help will prove useful.
Keep it all professional -- and optional
Above all other considerations you must remember that your office is a place of business. Any observance of Halloween must therefore be kept on a professional level. Just as it would be inappropriate for you to come to work in your "zombie prostitite" costume, it would be inappropriate, perhaps even offensive to some, to decorate the office with blood-soaked "corpses" and devilish ghouls.
It is important for you to remember that one of the biggest reasons companies avoid Halloween observances is the concern that some people will have religious objections to such a thing. Halloween's origin dates back to an ancient Celtic festival marking the return of spirits who had died the previous year. The Celts dressed as ghouls to keep the spririts at bay. When the Romans overtook Celtic lands, the festival tradition was transformed and continued.
Later, when Christianity took hold, the ancient festival was observed on the eve of All Saints Day or All Hallow's holiday, which took place on Nov. 1. The name Halloween derives from the term "All Hallow's Eve."
For this reason, some employees may object to celebrating Halloween in the office because of its religious overtones, or because they believe it celebrates death and the occult. Others may object to the waste of company time and resources. It is important to be sensitive to the beliefs and opinions of others and give them every opportunity to opt out of any festivities.
How to observe Halloween?
Let your company's values and those of its employees dictate the style of office celebration you do each Halloween. There are a number of things you can do to bring Halloween to your office.
Halloween Party -- The most traditional of Halloween festivities is the Halloween party. Lunch is usually the best time to have your office Halloween party. Reserve the lunch room or cafeteria in advance. Allow time for decorating the space. Your budget will dictate whether the lunch includes catered food, sandwiches, or punch and cookies. Having a lunch-time par ty increases the time that employees from different departments will interact and provides a venue for judging a costume contest if you have one. It also gives employees who cannot, or choose not to, participate in the costume contest an opportunity to interact with those employees who do.
Costume Contest -- Establish all rules well in advance of the contest. Make sure the rules are approved by management. We recommend adopting a minimum clothing requirement to avoid watching an employee marching through your contest wearing only a diaper and a smile. True story! Set up and publish the contest rules, including categories. You may want to have separate contests for teams and for individuals. Award prizes for best, most original, and scariest costume. To tie in the company setting, you can award a prize to the contestant whose costume best captures the company spirit.
Trick or Treat Parade -- Halloween is, first and foremost, a holiday for the childre n. Your company may want to consider inviting employees to bring their children to work for a costume parade. Nothing helps employees let their hair down and have fun at work like bringing their children to the office. Having kids in the office brings fun and laughter to a setting that could often times us more of both. It also recognizes the families of your employees and promotes your company's commitment to employees and their families. Ensure that plenty of candy is on hand to reward the trick or treaters.
Decorating Contest -- Nothing tests the creativity of your company's personnel like a good old fashioned Halloween decoration contest. Making sure the rules are established, approved and publicized well in advance of the contest, allow employees to use a pre-determined amount of time to decorate their group areas in a manner reflective of Halloween. What the employees come up with tells you something about the people in the group. How well they do it says a lo t about their team spirit. Keep an eye out for the informal leaders who emerge during the process.
Other Games and Contests
We do not recommend other contests such as apple bobbing or pumpkin carving for obvious reasons. Any activity that promotes the spreading of germs or the use of sharp knives really have no place in any office setting.
Legal Considerations
Despite all your best efforts, it is important to remember that Halloween parties in the workplace could potentially raise legal difficulties such as potential discrimination, harassment and safety issues.
For example, allowing decorations that some employees find offensive could be construed as contributing to a hostile work environment, notes attorney Garry Mathiason of Littler Mendelson in San Francisco.
Other possible legal issues include:
* Concerns about workplace violence. In this age of heightened sensitivity to workplace violence, an employee comes to work wearing a mask, carrying a toy gun and making jokes about hurting people could leave the company open to legal difficulties. Your human resources department should make clear that certain types of costumes or props such as fake weapons are not appropriate.
* Sexual harrassment. You should also establish ground rules for "sexy" costumes to avoid offending anyone in the office.
* E-mail harassment in the guise of holiday pranks. Workers who send obscene or threatening e-mails as Halloween jokes might expose employers to legal problems. Make sure your company policy already addresses such activity, and remind everyone of this before the Halloween party begins.
* Decorations that could be viewed as indicative of a hostile working environment. That Freddy Krueger poster you hang over your desk might get lots of compliments, but it could also inspire an HR complaint.
* Policies on time away from the workplace. Your company should review existing rules governing short absences from work. If you plan to let employees bring children to participate in celebrations, be prepared to answer employees' questions about whether they must take vacation time to pick up and bring their children or whether the time will be covered in other ways.
* Religious accommodation. Some employees, such as followers of the Celtic-based religion Wicca, might consider Halloween itself a religious holiday. Employers could get into trouble if those employees request the day off as a religious holiday and the employers do not accommodate them. Employers should be prepared for this type of request.
Is your office ready for Halloween?
Don't let the legal, ethical and personnel issues keep your company from observing a holiday that is a part of most American lives. There is no reason to ban costumes, nix the party and take down the fake cobwebs. With careful planning and implementation, your company's Halloween party can be a success.
Here is a checklist for you as your company prepares for its Halloween party:
1) Has HR been notified and has management signed off on all festivities?
2) Have all arrangements been made?
3) Have all notifications been sent in a timely manner?
4) Does the company handbook or written policies address all issues that might come up?
5) Have employees been given the opportunity not to participate?
6) Have employees been given the opportunity to take the day off if they believe it to be a religious holiday?
7) Are all decorations and food offerings safe and within guidelines set by fire codes and company policies?
8) Are all HR people in the office for the duration of the festivities?
If the answer to all of the above questions is YES, your company is ready to sponsor a safe and successful office Halloween party.
