Employees at Vox Media Inc. aren’t happy about thisyear’s holiday party. The media company, whichemploys hundreds of journalists, decided to end its open-bar policyfollowing allegations of sexual harassment in the workplace. In lieu ofunlimited drinks, this year’s festivities will be heavy on horsd’oeuvres. “Don’t want to miss out on the more food,” oneemployee whined in a message to co-workers.

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Emotions among three Vox staffers, all of whom requestedanonymity, ranged from annoyance to grudging acceptance.A few felt the drink limit unfairly punished everyone.Another felt babied, arguing that alcohol isn’t the root of sexualharassment and treating it as such sends the wrong message aboutwhether the company is serious about fixing the realproblem.

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As sex misconduct allegations ripple acrossindustries, companies are starting to reckon with how theworkplace allows, or enables, inappropriate behavior. Thatmeans not only looking at structural issues, such as humanresource departments and sexual harassment training, butscrutinizing routine work events. And since it’s that time of year,the annual festivities have left a lot of employers strugglingwith what to do about this fraught holiday tradition.

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A survey of a dozen organizations that have oustedemployees for sexual misconduct in the past year revealedthat Vox isn’t the only one to have changed things. Thedangerous cauldron that is the company party has been around fordecades, and companies have moved slowly over time to protectemployees, and themselves, better. This year, a lot ofthem have quickened their pace.

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The open bar is out

Uber, which in 2015 made a huge splash by renting an entireSan Francisco pier,said it canceled its holiday party this year. The company has been the subject ofwidespread reports of sexism. Before a previous company party,Uber’s founder and chief executive officer, TravisKalanick, wrote a memo toemployees outlining how they should go about having sex with eachother.

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At the more staid end of the spectrum, upper management atNPR—which was also swept up in thescandals—considered canceling its annual potluck soirée butended up going ahead anyway, one employee who requested anonymitysaid. “Plans have not changed for the NPR holiday party,”spokeswoman Isabel Lara said in an emailed statement. “It is a veryfamily-oriented event, staff are encouraged to bring their kids,and there’s a special children's menu and three rooms of children’sactivities.”

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In previous years,each of the dozen or so dining spots owned by NewOrleans-based Besh Restaurant Group had its own holidayparty. This year, as the company reels from allegationsof harassment by founder JohnBesh, it decided to consolidate into one event with“limitations on alcohol.” Besh, who has denied any wrongdoing, hassince stepped down from the company. At other companiescaught up in the maelstrom, the rank-and-file don’t feel likecelebrating anyway. Employees considered boycottingthe holiday party at New York public radio station WNYC afternews reports of allegations that JohnHockenberry engaged in inappropriate behavior whilehosting the show, “The Takeaway.” Hockenberry, who publiclyapologized, had left the station before the actions were madepublic. The WNYC party, which had a two-hour open bar, wentahead Tuesday as planned. (WNYC confirmed the party tookplace but declined further comment.)

For some employers with workers accused of harassment, it’sbeen business as usual. At Vice, a media outlet known fora loose office cultureeven before it fired three staffers for allegedmisconduct, end-of-year festivities went right ahead, fouremployees who requested anonymity said. One staffer describeda previous soirée where “everyone rushed the bar and startedfree-pouring their own stuff.” (Vice declined to comment forthis story.) The New Republic, which ousted two topeditors in the past two months because of sex harassmentallegations, hosted a cocktails and hors d’oeuvres partyfor employees recently. Others touched by the controversy,from Amazon Studios, to DC Comics to laborbehemoth AFL-CIO, are also still having parties.

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'Lasting change'

For companies interested in backing away from the punch bowl,toning down work-sponsored events that traditionallyinvolve drinking is one of many ways to start cleaning upcorporate culture. At Vox Media, CEO Jim Bankoff sent acompanywide email last month outlining plans to mandateanti-harassment training, create tighter policies around alcoholicbeverages at functions, and generally ensure that “work eventsand interactions meet the highest standard of professionalism,” aperson familiar with the email said. Fay Sliger, a Vox spokeswoman,declined to comment. For its part, Uber brought in a professor from HarvardUniversity to teach management skills.

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Creative Artists Agency canceled its Golden Globe awards partyaltogether, pledging to use the budget to defray the legal costsincurred by sexual harassmentvictims. CAA was caught up in the scandal that ignited thecurrent debate. The New York Times, reporting onallegations about film producer Harvey Weinstein, saidmultiple CAA agents were aware of Weinstein’s behavior toward womenwhile arranging meetings with female clients. (CAA, which declinedto comment, later apologized to “any person the agency letdown.”)

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“Lasting change requires new day-to-day habits,” Richard Lovett,CAA’s president, wrote in a memo he sent to staff onFriday.

But while many companiestrip over each other trying to appear responsive to what’sbeen called a “reckoning,” there’s also a financial imperative. Theoffice holiday party has always caused anxiety because ofits potential for liability—the company is generally on the hook ifa lawsuit is filed over behavior at a companyevent.

“Holiday parties have commonly given rise to sexual harassmentclaims because people are often drinking alcohol and inhibitionsare low,” said Karen Elliott, a labor and employment attorneyat Eckert Seamans.

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So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that only 68 percent ofcompanies reported throwing parties as recently as2015, down from 83 percent in 1993, according to a survey by theSociety for Human Resource Management. The national conversationbegun by Harvey Weinstein radically intensified a debate that’sbeen going on for a while. A survey of 150 humanresource managers by HR firm Challenger, Gray & ChristmasInc. found that only 48 percent of employers will offer alcohol atholiday parties this year, down from 62 percent in 2016.

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But when there are hundreds, if not thousands, of employees toconsider, chucking the holiday party isn’t so simple. There has tobe something for them look forward to,no? While workers grumble when the annual event is watereddown, as at Vox, it turns out employees would actually preferdifferent perks. Ninety percent of those surveyed by HRservice firm Randstad US LP said they would prefer abonus or extra vacation days to an end-of-year shindig. Thatsame survey found a majority of people also consider holidayparties to be an obligation—showing up just so the boss knowsyou’re a team player isn’t much fun.

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Rather than give up altogether, a few companies this year areattempting a balancing act. For example, New York-based publicrelations firm Channel V Media usually creates a holidaycocktail for its party. Not this year. The company will provideonly Champagne and wine to avoid “high levels of intoxication,”founder Gretel Going said. Also, all office doors will be kept openwith the lights on to discourage people from sneaking off. Theparty ends early—at 10 p.m.—with an after-party at a nearby venuefor anyone who wants to stay out.

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“This may not prevent bad behavior,” Going said, “but it removesit from our workplace.”

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Though a recommended practice among HR experts, such a moveoff-site doesn’t remove the threat of civilliability if something badhappens. Maybe a return of the holiday bonus is the way togo.

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