Booze or no booze?
That is a central question businesses must decide when planning a golf outing, Christmas party, clambake or a cruise on Narragansett Bay.
Imbibing tends to loosen collars. But there are a few potential negatives, event planners say. The presence of alcohol can alienate non-drinkers and generally is seen as a no-no for company picnics or other venues where children will be present.
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And, of course, offering alcohol adds the liability factor. For these and other reasons, businesses increasingly are passing on the keg of beer or open bar.
“Alcohol just doesn’t seem to be as big of a focus as it once was,” said Richard Carbotti, president of Perfect Surroundings Inc., a special-events design and production company in Newport.
Carbotti has spent 17 years planning extravagant events throughout Rhode Island and elsewhere in New England. He said fewer and fewer businesses are serving alcohol at their events, and those that do often are cutting out the hard stuff and sticking to beer, wine and champagne. Many are substituting bottled water and fruit drinks for booze, he said.
“You still have some diehards who have vodka pouring down ice fountains and crazy stuff like that, but it’s a lot less common these days,” Carbotti said.
There could be another factor to give Rhode Island businesses a reason to think twice before uncorking the bottles at their next company outing. After an 11-year campaign, the state’s drunk driving limit was dropped to a .08 blood alcohol level, from .10, when Gov. Don Carcieri signed the bill last month.
Event planners, though, say the tighter standards are merely a continuation of a trend that companies have been keenly cognizant of when it comes to alcohol and company-sponsored events.
“Companies already are much more conscious of the liability issue than ever before,” said Craig Sutton, owner of Craig Sutton Entertainment Services in Framingham, Mass., which doesn’t serve alcohol directly but uses catering companies at the events it plans. “They’re more worried than ever about what is going to come back on them.”
But there is something to be said for trusting your employees to drink responsibly, Sutton said. For example, his firm has planned the holiday party for the staff of a hotel in Cambridge for several years. Each year alcohol was served – until last year.
“It had a definite damper effect on the amount of people who attended the holiday party,” he said. “I think the employees were a little upset because they felt like they were responsible enough to drink and have a good time without getting out of hand.”
Cost could be one reason why companies are cutting out alcohol from outings and events. “Everybody’s cutting back on everything, and alcohol is typically one of the most expensive items,” Sutton said.
For businesses that do opt to offer alcohol, planners offer a few key pieces of advice.
John Bowen of Beacon Entertainment in Andover, Mass., says companies should always offer transportation to and from the event if alcohol is being served.
“That covers them legally,” Bowen said. “They’re able to say, ‘We provided transportation and made sure our employees got to and from the party safely,’” Bowen said.
Bowen added that companies increasingly are offering just one or two free drinks to employees, rather than opening up the bar.
“I think the days of a full, open bar are over. That’s insanity,” he said.
And companies should always hire a licensed company to tend the bar, Sutton said. A licensed company, theoretically at least, will carry the appropriate liability insurance. And experienced bartenders are more adept at spotting somebody who has had one too many.
