A French court has ruled that employers cannot dismiss an employee simply because they won’t partake in after-work drinks or team-building activities.
The unnamed worker, indentified in court documents as ‘Mr T’, lost his job at Paris-based management consultancy Cubik Partners because he would not go out for a drink with his colleagues. He argued he had a “right to be boring”.
The company dismissed him on grounds of “professional inadequacy” in 2015. It also accused him of being a poor listener and difficult to work with, according to reports.
However, Mr T told France’s highest court, the Court of Cassation, that he was entitled to “critical behaviour and to refuse company policy based on incitement to partake in various excesses”.
The court found that staff at the company often engaged in “humiliating and intrusive practices”, including “simulating sexual acts”, colleagues sharing a bed during seminars and the use of nicknames in the office.
The court agreed that Mr T should not have to take part in such activities and ordered Cubik Partners to pay him £2,574 in compensation.
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The ruling said the company was not allowed to make employees “forcibly participate in seminars and end-of-week drinks frequently ending up in excessive alcohol intake, encouraged by associates who made very large quantities of alcohol available”.
It also ruled that Mr T had the right to dignity and respect of his private life and that he was using his right to freedom of expression by refusing to take part in after-work drinks.
Mr T is seeking an additional £395,630 in damages, which the court is set to examine in a follow-up hearing.
Kate Palmer, director of HR advice and consultancy at Peninsula, said UK employers should learn from the “right to be boring” judgment, especially as Christmas party season approaches.
“For some workplaces, a heavy drinking culture can become embedded. The Wolf of Wall Street film and 1960s era series Mad Men conjure up rather extreme depictions of such workplaces,” she said.
“But with Christmas just around the corner, and it being the first in several years without the risk of an impending lockdown, many employees will likely be partaking in more alcohol-fuelled activity. It’s best to make sure your celebrations and outings are not centred around alcohol. Whilst a tipple or two is generally acceptable at work parties, be mindful of employees who are underage or who choose to not drink, whether for religious, medical or purely personal reasons.”
She said forcing workplace social activities on employees could offend or accidentally exclude some people, so employers should make them optional.
“Perhaps the main thing to consider is that whilst a fun work environment might sound like just the ticket, there are very subjective views on what this actually entails. Mr T didn’t enjoy the excessive consumption of alcohol and the ‘humiliating and intrusive practices’ that some of his colleagues participated in – and that’s totally understandable,” she said.
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“As with most things, there is no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to instilling the ‘perfect’ workplace culture. That’s why it’s important to have frequent one-to-ones with employees to ensure that their feedback and concerns are heard and addressed wherever possible.”
