Being a woman in a male-dominated field can be tough in more ways than one. For this Redditor, it meant being expected to single-handedly plan the office Christmas party—because apparently, that’s not a man’s job.
Tired of taking on the thankless role, she decided to say no this year. But with no one else willing to take charge, the entire celebration fell apart before it even began.
As a woman in an office full of men, she was expected to single-handedly plan the work Christmas party
Image credits: Yunus Tuğ (not the actual photo)
But when she said no, the entire celebration fell apart before it even began
Image credits: Getty Images (not the actual photo)
Image source: ninjaprincessrocket
63% of workers have regrets about their behavior at company holiday parties
Image credits: Andrej Lišakov (not the actual photo)
When work Christmas parties manage to make it past the planning stage, there’s no guarantee they’ll actually go well—or even be worth the effort. In fact, according to a survey of 1,000 people conducted by FinanceBuzz, 63% of employees have regrets about their behavior at these events.
For nearly a third of workers (31%), drinking too much tops the list of regrets, tied with speaking negatively about their workplace. Other slip-ups include making inappropriate jokes (28%) and flirting with coworkers (26%). Surprisingly, over 15% confessed to getting into a verbal or physical confrontation during a work-sponsored holiday party.
Despite the time and resources put into these events, many employees would rather skip them altogether—the survey revealed that 67% would prefer a bonus or extra time off over a holiday party. However, 70% still feel pressured to attend. Even worse, more than one in three employees have felt obligated to drink alcohol at these gatherings.
Obviously, whatever companies are trying to achieve with holiday parties isn’t working. In today’s world, employees value fair pay and a positive work culture far more than forced celebrations. Writer Laura Bogart summed it up perfectly in her Refinery29 op-ed, Unpopular Opinion: I Hate Office Holiday Parties:
“It’s clear that we don’t want ‘healing and wellness mini-retreats,’ game nights, or dance parties,” she says. “We want to be challenged to do our best work and encouraged to innovate; we want to feel like our opinions matter and—most important—we want better, fairer wages. None of these things can be put on a Secret Santa list.”
In the replies, the woman explained why the men hadn’t even bothered to wrap the presents
Many readers chimed in with similar experiences
While others praised her for standing up for herself
