behaviours expected and the pitfalls that might occur if they ignored them. I like to think our people are responsible and professional. Certainly, the past couple of years had been incident-free, and our complaints mechanism hadn’t recorded anything going through this time either. Our flexible working arrangements had given everyone a chance to be at home for nearly all the holiday period. I aimed to be working and on call till midday on the 24th, and most people were working remotely that week which was an advantage considering the disruption that usually happened in the second half of December. At the weekend, I had bought and set up and decorated the tree at home, the presents were all wrapped, so there were only the provisions to sort out! We had invited both sets of parents over for New Year so it would be good to see them as they all lived a fair distance away. HAPPY NEW YEAR from the UNDERCOVER HR MANAGER!
I wanted to check how the Christmas party arrangements were coming along. My department had compiled a checklist for all staff members so that it was clear the kind of behaviour we expected and some Dos and Don’ts. As previously, we were holding the event at a West End hotel the week before Christmas, and the evening’s entertainments were being confirmed. The committee had selected some cocktails and non-alcoholic varieties to feature on the evening’s menu. Karaoke and games had proved popular in the past, and a raffle for our charitable causes. All seemed in good shape; because the members had all volunteered, they took pride in their work. 4.45 pm I cleared my desk and was ready to set off home. The previous day had been a long one, as the Exhibition halls tend to get a bit stuffy, and it’s tiring spending so much time on foot most of the time. I’d arrived home just after 10.15 yesterday evening and was ready for the weekend!
I wished everyone goodnight and good weekend, and headed for the door. Monday 10.18 am By now, I had heard all the gossip from the Christmas party last Friday. Earlier the CEO had dropped in to say what a great job the Committee had done, and I was in full agreement. For the past couple of years having them arrange the whole event had been a spectacular success. She went on to say that the business we had been thinking of acquiring was in the Due Diligence stage, so nothing was going to happen until well into January. As in previous years, the party had been held in a hotel salon in the West End, fully decorated, with a DJ providing the music and organising karaoke and games at intervals. There were cocktails both alcoholic and alcohol- free served free from 6.00 pm until 10.00 pm. Most people had to leave by then to catch trains. We had produced a guideline sheet just to remind everyone of the
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ISSUE 8 GLOBAL PAYROLL MAGAZINE
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