Have lots of workplaces cancelled the xmas do ?

Yes, I think it's the norm.

We usually have team lunches and then a whole department party but both have been cancelled.

However, we are still having them but they are being funded by us. The amount you contribute to the team lunch depends on your job title and the department party is being funded by the Senior and Executive Directors.

Our boss has said she'll pay for our team lunch and asked us to make a contribution to a charity instead.

Apparently my company haven't been allowed a christmas party for years, nothing to do with the credit crunch - we've done really well this year - but because of a xmas party a few years ago when things apparently got out of hand. It's a shame. We're having a big meeting next week with a night out, so we're classing that as our Xmas party!

Could you all do something yoursleves?

At my current workplace, our department goes out for a late lunch (so we don't have to go back to the office afterwards) and we pay for it ourselves, although sometimes one of the bosses will contribute more than their share to reduce everyone else's. I imagine we'll be paying for it all ourselves this year given I work for one of the banks getting money from the Government and there's already been a lot of bad press about them paying for staff parties.

At my old workplace, there was a party for everyone in the office and we had to pay a certain amount towards it, the rest of the cost was paid by the company.

Ours is threatening to make us pay for ours, its usually free. They also cancelled the fireworks display on 5 November. There is also talk of asking us to take a voluntary pay cut, forced redundancies (they offered us all voluntary redundancy a few weeks ago, had lots of applications but only accepted a few of them), and a few other money saving cut-backs.

H works in the public sector so doesn't get as much as £5 towards his so that's not an issue but someone organised the meal/night out that was going to work out at nearly £100 each over the night. A group of break-aways, including H, are having a chinese take away at work and joining the others after they have eaten there £50pp meal for drinks. It's just too much money any year, never mind this year.

We don't get any money towards ours from the company but we haven't had one for a few years after a racist incident with some tiddlywinks won in a cracker.

We usually go on group lunches, department lunches that turn into night's out and a massive company do but have been told we're not having the group lunches. Fair enough though, I feel!

I work in the public sector so we pay for our own. We are really bucking the trend this year as there are more do's than usual. I think that a lot of people are fed up and are taking any opportunity to go out and let their hair down.

The person whose firm won't let them have a Christmas bash due to previous bad behaviour - Is there an entertaining story in that worth sharing?

We had an early one on Friday but there were no crackers, no christmas spirit - harumph!

I was talking to a friend who had one booked at a local hotel for next week but it was cancelled by the hotel due to lack of bookings so could it be that the venue's are cancelling?

Sorry Francesca I have to ask...

We have an Xmas do for our branch (which we have to pay for - H and I aren't going) and a departmental Xmas do which we have to organise and we are given £25 each. It's our choice to spend it how we want, whether it's getting wankered on cocktails or a nice meal somewhere.

A bit stingy I suppose, and certainly nothing like my previous work where we got a free party at Pacha with dressing-up, food and free drinks - but there are some serious upsides to where I am now!

I have to know how a bunch of pharmacists managed to fall out over tiddleywinks.

We pay our own, so it will be drunken shenanigans on the last day of term no doubt. I remember when I worked for a bank in London, they had this AMAZING do which was completely free, and the money it must have cost made my head hurt.

We were told our budget was minimal, so we chose team sports at the local sports hall in the afternoon (about £3 a head), then a few beers in the office and out for cheap but good Thai food (about £15 a head) and drinks afterwards (whatever individuals want to spend).

The company then said there was no budget for it, and we decided to go ahead anyway coz we all fancied it and it wasn't too expensive.

2 weeks later a few voices are popping up saying "I don't like Thai food, etc..." - you seemed to like it when someone else was paying for it! I'm quite annoyed - I don't want to play team sports and there's other types of food I'd rather have than Thai, but if the general consensus (sp?) is to do that, I'll happily go along with it and pay for it. It's not expensive.

Rant over. Sorry.

The tiddlywinks were being stuck to heads and impressions were being done. There was only 10 of us round the table and it was really rather uncomfortable. I tried to ignore hoping that the novelty would wear off but it didn't.

When I worked for Boots years ago we were banned from a few places in manchester. Pharmacists know how to party!

Ours is cancelled on account of the fact that they went into administration, Mr 'Dango's is still going ahead as far as we know, but it's always in January anyway.

We're having two Christmas dos - one is a lunch which everyone pays for themselves so no credit crunch impact- we all paid our deposit ages ago so there's only about another £8 to pay anyway. Then there's a Christmas event which is an afternoon into evening do, but this year we have a dedicated social committee who have arranged it and it is paid for with money earned through other social events that have happened during the year - with a small supplement from the management, but mostly paid by ourselves. We're lucky to have them I think - I can see they'd be an obvious place to cut back where work usually pay.

Two Christmas do's for me. One part paid for by work and the other not. Normally we get everything paid for, but as we are more than likely going to face more restructuring/redeployment/redundancy in the new year, there is certainly no grumbling from me for part-subsidisation. However, am amazed by how many of my colleagues are grumbling about having to pay for themselves. FFS if you don't want to pay, then don't go. A free night out on the company is not part of your contract and especially in the current climate - come on people!

I've had 6 job cancelled for December, I work freelance in events and they were all Christmas do's. These are for really big firms who have all said variations of "we can't be seen to be spending money on Christmas do's, in the current climate".

H has always insisted on throwing extravagant xmas do's for his employees as he is very aware and appreciative that ultimately, its his people who make the business successful.

This year however, we are trying to scale it back a little in not so obvious areas. For instance, last year we went to Oulton Hall and H arranged individual transport for all the couples, this year it will be a central pick up and a single coach to the venue. Instead of everyone having the best rooms available, they will have standard or middle rooms, the wine at the table will be from the standard list and I know H has haggled very very hard with the venue over the rates anyway. Hopefully everyone will still have a fab time, its all about the people you are with anyway isn't it?

Can I come and work for Mr Lannie? He sounds very generous, I hope it's appreciated.

Neither me or H are having a Christmas do this year. We work for big companies but they are not willing to pay.

Ours hasn't. It's the whole company, well our sites do next Friday and I'm really looking forward to it as staff from other sites have been invited and it'll be nice to put faces to voices. A few people from our major client is going to be there as well, hopefully with some lovely goodies as well.

I wish they would cancel ours. We get £25 per head towards a lunch out AND a massive company wide black tie, sit down, free bar thing which must cost thousands. Which is nice when they will be laying staff off in January.....

Ours is still going ahead, though I have heard a nasty rumour that there will be no champagne this year.

Think this may be last year we get away with it. The company pay £12.50 towards the do's for each dept, with the staff supposedly contibuting the rest. However the team I work in have never contirbuted, and always seem to have the best do....

Mr Pics has 2 do's one with his south office one with the northern office he is having to pay for both. To be honest I would not mind being asked to contibute or pay.

I wouldnt have minded being asked to contribute either but they didnt ask.

We appear to be fortunate as my company is continuing its plans to allow departmental 'do's' with the major part funded by them, and topped up by us. It will be my first one with the company but from what I hear, it isn't an extravagant, wild sort of event, just a nice meal, a chat with colleagues and some boogying afterwards.

We cant all get together to organise ours if one can do it the othr cant so maybe after xmas may be better

Ours has been cancelled after the papers caught on to a recent rewarsd event thing in Edinburgh, and they don't want to be seen to be throwing money down the tube. Shame, because it was free and in a nice local hotel.

My team decided to have one of our own, and I am having no problems getting places for the saturday before Christmas, which I think says it all.

We get a lunch out, pay for your own drinks thing as a dept, team is doing a lunch pay for yourself

H's work is still doing a big thing but they are a big company

We never really have them anyway as i work with a bunch of oldies that won't go out.

I wish mine was cancelled. We're a small national consultancy, which means they've picked a location which is equally inconvenient for everyone. So a 2hr drive to Coventry on a Friday afternoon, a sober meal and a 2 hr drive back. Wooo. i'm dreading it. I've been going to bed at 8.30pm these days, it's going to kill me.

Ours hasnt been cancelled (yet)

but its about 10 miles from work (8 for me from home), and they said originally they were going to put coaches on, now theyre not and Im having the dilemma about how to get there and back

Theres a group of people going that have organised a mini bus but its full and i cant afford a taxi there and back on my own (£20 each way according to the taxi place i just rang)

Im almost debating whether to pull out as its going to cost me more to get there than the company are paying for me to be there

I've never had a free lunch! I've always had to pay for it. Admittedly most of my working life has been in public sector (local government followed by the uni) so unlikely to happen but I did have two years in private - where I didn't even get a Christmas card let alone a bonus or meal!