The holidays are approaching and with that comes an onslaught of parties, events, and late nights. Whether you’re celebrating with family, friends, or coworkers, there’s bound to be food, festivities, and boozy drinks galore throughout the holiday season. While it’s a time to bask in merriment and joy, the holiday season brings about the sobering fact that drinking and driving do not mix.
This is especially important if you’re hosting holiday parties in the workplace. If you’re serving alcohol at your office parties, it’s your responsibility to promote responsible drinking. Alcohol-induced injuries and fatalities are far too prevalent in Canada. The last thing you want is one of your employees getting into an accident leaving your party. To promote holiday safety and prevent drunk driving, here are some tips to get you through:
1. Set Party Guidelines
If you’re serving alcohol, give your employees time to plan their way home beforehand. You could even hire a designated driving service in Vancouver for your employees to ensure they don’t get behind the wheel. Give as much notice as you can so that they can plan their evenings accordingly.
Additionally, be clear with your employees that alcohol is not the focus of the party. Encourage drinking in moderation and highlight the alcohol-free sources of entertainment for holiday parties. Activities such as games, music, dancing, and of course food can lessen the pressure your employees feel to drink at the party.
Lastly, state the consequences involved with destructive behaviour from intoxication. It’s not a fun conversation, however, it’s worth it to protect your business and employees. Consider including it in your employee handbook and review before the party.
2. Hire a Bartender
A great way to prevent too much drinking at your office holiday parties is to hire professional bartenders. While people tend to be a little generous with the alcohol pour when self-serve is offered, trained bartenders can control the flow of alcohol and add another level of class to your event. Furthermore, you can request that your bartenders don’t serve guests who are visibly intoxicated.
3. Non-Alcoholic Alternatives
A no-brainer but important to mention. A great way to promote responsible partying is by serving alcohol-free drinks. To really sell them, have holiday themed, zero-proof cocktails that make them more appealing to your employees.
4. Use Drink Tickets
If you really want to promote responsible drinking, you can hand out a set number of drink tickets, good for 1-2 drinks per employee. When people have to pay for their own drinks, they’re less likely to over-indulge. This is a great way to discourage too much drinking while also controlling the cost of liquor.
5. Serve Food
If there’s alcohol involved at the event, you should always offer food. For one, this gives your employees a non-drinking source of indulgence. They can participate in the fun without the pressure to drink. Secondly, drinking on an empty stomach is a sure-fire way to get drunk quickly. Offer a variety of foods that are friendly to your employees’ diet restrictions to soak up the alcohol and discourage intoxication.
6. Provide Easy Access to Transportation
Ensuring that your employees have a safe way home is crucial. There are a few options to promote safe transport from office holiday parties:
- Public Transportation. Host your party close to public transport. This prevents your employees from getting behind the wheel and allows easy access to a safe way home.
- Proximity to Hotel. If your office is near a hotel, you could book off a series of rooms for employees who have a long commute home. If booking an event room, you could choose one with hotels nearby or even book an event room in a hotel. This way you’ll likely get a deal on rooms as well.
- Designated Driver Service. To save money and stress, booking a designated driver service in Vancouver is a guaranteed way to get your employees home safely. With this option, you can book in advance and factor the costs of transportation into the office party budget. It’s also far less expensive than taxis and car share services, making it the ideal choice for corporate holiday parties.
Need a Safe Ride Home?
If you’re looking to book a designated driver service in Vancouver, you’ve come to the right place. With Safe Designated Drivers, we can get you and your employees to their destination safely. Our affordable prices and unlimited hours of service makes us the ideal choice to prevent drunk driving after holiday parties. Book your designated driver service today!