The holiday season is upon us. It’s a time of excitement, joy and connection through family celebrations, scheduled vacations and charitable activities. But with the energy the season brings also comes a slew of HR challenges: navigating religious expression in the workplace, holiday parties and managing behavior, multiple and competing requests for time off, just to name a few. Below are some tips to help you to navigate the most wonderful time of the year at work.
Know Your Workforce
There is not a one-size-fits-all standard for how a business should celebrate the holiday season. If you have a relatively young workforce, you may want to reconsider the idea of alcohol at the holiday party. If you have an ethnically diverse workforce, you may want to incorporate an opportunity for learning and sharing about different cultural traditions. All in all, it is important to understand the various personalities and dynamics at play as you decide how to appropriately and safely celebrate with your teams.
Aim for Inclusion
The focus of holiday celebrations should be to build morale and help teammates feel appreciated. Keep activities neutral, considerate and in most cases, voluntary. Keep in mind that any event that requires an employee to spend time at home preparing for a celebration or to spend money (gift or cookie exchanges) can oftentimes create more stress than joy. Consider catering lunch at the office. Or provide employees with the option to choose one day to take an extra-long lunch or to leave the office early to do some shopping or meet up with a loved one for coffee.
Be Respectful
The holiday season should be a time for everyone to enjoy regardless of beliefs or traditions. Celebratory activities can be good for morale. Allowing people to decorate their office space, as an example, can be a fun way to lift spirits. But it can also create conflict and stress. Set parameters ahead of time and enforce them consistently (e.g. no bright blinking lights, no glitter or items that create a mess, no decorations that infringe on another employee’s space, only secular decorations in shared spaces etc.).
Be Consistent
Address PTO requests in accordance with your policies. If you normally evaluate requests on a first come first served basis, continue to utilize that system. Avoid denying requests when there is no legitimate reason to do so.
The holidays are demanding and employers who recognize this fact are likely to generate goodwill and loyalty among employees. There is no requirement that employers do anything out of the ordinary to celebrate the season. If nothing else, showing respect and appreciation and offering grace during this sometimes stressful and emotional season, may be the best and most important gift an employer can give.