Work Christmas parties

[HamishBamish]

AIBU to think that having 3 work Christmas parties is excessive. DH has 3 work parties over the next 2 weeks, all within the working week and according to him there are several he isn't attending!

Today he has a team lunch starting at 12.30 which apparently goes on into the late evening. Then the whole company bash next week, with something for managers another evening too.

It really drops me in it work wise as I have to pick up his slack with the school run etc and I'm so busy with work I can't attend the one work thing I have.

Well its only a short period of time, for christmas, so Id just suck it up, apart from not being able to go to my christmas thig - I would be insisting!

What childcare is in place for whilst you both work? Could that not be increased slightly short term to cover his being out, so that you dont have to pick up the slack?

It's Christmas. YABU and Scroogelike

Can't you shuffle things around to get to yours?

Hmm, it doesn't sound excessive, but if he has other commitments, he doesn't actually have to attend all of them. Is the reason you can't attend your party because he's going to so many, or does that not really make any difference?

doesn't seem fair at all you are missing your works do because he has so many!!

is it always all about him?

I've got 4!
One with my team
One whole staff
One with my leadership team
And another just my work mates

will sober up in January

Hmm.
I think 3 is not necessarily excessive. But it is if it means you cant get to even one. That seems unfair.
My DH works with several agencies so has a few dos to go to, but they're more "worky" than purely social and the timing means I quite look forward to a bit of peace. If he was on three jollies that left me with extra work and then I couldn't go to my work do I would be pissed off too.
So yanbu imho.
It can get very busy and sometimes very expensive too.

We have 5. I really dont understand why we need 5. It really is overkill. Thankfully only one is compulsory.

If all of his are not compulsory i would be telling him that i am going to mine, and either he misses one that night or he arranges childcare.

DH has 4!
One with his team in the office where he works
One with his line manager in the office where his line manager works, 100 miles away
One with a big (household name, v popular with MNers) client
One with another client

It is safe to say that the construction industry is no longer in recession.

I work in the public sector and have no "official" Christmas dos, and have opted out of the staff-propelled mass all afternoon and evening drinking session round Leeds. I'm also in construction and work with a lot of blokes. Them drinking en mass, on a mission is rather scary.

We had 3.

A team do, a big department do, and a seperate lunch.

Luckily they've all fallen on nights when dh will be home by 5 but if not it would have been a PITA to get childcare.

I can't attend my Christmas party as I've had to move my meetings around to cover his and therefore have a conflicting client call (US client). I do a lot of work in the early evening due to time zone differences, so it makes it very tricky for me when DH isn't around to deal with the DC. I can juggle around 1 party, but 3 is pushing it and is making for a very stressful couple of weeks for me.

I see that having 3 isn't that unusual though!

Why cant you just say to him "Im able to be at home for X and Y, however I have to be in work the same time as Z so if you also want to go to Z you will need to arrange a babysitter".

I work from home ThinkIeBeenHacked so it's really about keeping the children quiet so as not to disturb my call. I could have arranged a babysitter though, you're right. A bit late in the day now though.

I just think because I work from home he's used to being able to rely on me being around, which is fine as long as I don't have meetings. He's just texted that he will come home in time for helping with things this evening (today is the lunch party) rather than staying out all night too, which will help a lot.

4's nothing. I've been invited to 16 work Christmas parties. 1 at HQ and the others are site ones