Employee Birthday Celebration Policy Ignored: Was It Indiscipline or Justified?

Hi HRs, I want an opinion on the following case.

Employee Birthday Celebration Policy Violation

One junior employee brought a pastry to the office pantry and celebrated the birthday of another employee (a close friend) along with other employees. The company has a specific policy for such events, which states that a minimum of two employees' birthdays should be celebrated in the office by cutting a cake. The HR informed the concerned employee that the event could not be officially conducted that day due to a valid reason, but it would be celebrated later.

Despite this message, the employee ignored it and arranged a small pastry/cake, cutting it and sharing it with other peers. Now, the questions are:

1) Will this be treated as indiscipline and a violation of HR and company policies, or was what he did right?
2) If it was wrong, what action should be taken?

Please provide your valuable comments on the above matter as it would be highly appreciated. Thanks.

Hi,

At the outset, although the deed is not a very serious misconduct to be punished, it is disobeying HR's version of company policy. The said employee should have taken due permission from HR by approaching them again before continuing with the celebration. HR would have allowed the cake cutting if properly convinced.

Is it enjoyable for you when your management scolds employees for petty issues? Now, the question is:

1) Will it be considered as indiscipline and a violation of the message of HR and company policies, or is what he has done right? Is your management so autocratic that they fail to participate in the joy of a birthday celebration for an employee? Why do you view this as a violation of discipline?

2) If it is wrong, what action should be taken? Let's celebrate the birthday of the person.

It is not about celebration; it is about maintaining the office decorum as well as the HR message. Once there is a clear instruction from HR and an explanation of the birthday policies, how can any individual overrule the decision and celebrate in the office premises just because the concerned birthday was for a special friend? My focus is on this particular point.

Yes, we are all human beings and we love to enjoy any celebration, but at the same time, one has to remember that it is official, not a personal matter.

Policy Adherence and Employee Conduct

Interesting case, and I am surprised at the rather vociferous support of the "birthday party" and its organizer. The initial post mentioned that the company has a clear policy of celebrating birthdays by clubbing them; one cannot question whether the policy is right or wrong. As long as a policy exists, it has to be followed, or it has to be amended to reflect current systems.

Allowing people to behave or act contrary to policy is opening a Pandora's box. On what basis will you deny one employee and permit another employee? What are the policies you will allow others to contravene and for how long? What are the policies that you will enforce strictly?

Private vs. Office Celebrations

Coming to the celebration itself, it could have just as easily been organized as a private affair after office hours. Why do it in the office when it is clearly discouraged?

Addressing Misconduct

In my opinion, the person was just trying to be a hero/heroine and clearly indicated their disregard and disdain towards organization policies. This should clearly be seen as misconduct and dealt with accordingly, as per company policy. Don't make the mistake of taking this personally; deal with it as per the company discipline policy. I am sure you will have one that includes a "progressive discipline process" where disciplinary issues are graded as "minor" or "major," and penalties are also graded for severity.

Have a look at this thread: https://www.citehr.com/54381-miscond...-download.html

One simple question: Did the celebration happen during working hours or during the lunch break?

In my point of view, celebrating employees' birthdays is for motivating and engaging employees towards their job. If no job is affected by this activity, then there is nothing wrong with it.

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I think the incident is being blown out of proportion. If friends who are also colleagues celebrate their birthdays among themselves while on their tea break or an extra break, how can that be a violation of the policy? The company may have a policy of celebrating all birthdays together at the end of the month. As an HR initiative, please celebrate it, but how can you stop them from celebrating the event among themselves during their breaks?

So, in the entire scenario, what was HR so annoyed about? I think it is the ego speaking and nothing else. If I had been the employee, I would have resigned at the same moment when HR asked me for an explanation. This is just saying that you are robots and not humans, and you should only act as per my command.