It’s time for company Christmas parties: a waste of money or a good party?

By: Trademagazin Date: 2025. 12. 12. 11:56

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Hungarian employers continue to stick to their company Christmas traditions: where there was a festive event in the past, the vast majority will organize it this year as well, and only a small percentage of companies have abandoned this tradition. However, according to nearly a third of employees, this is an unnecessary expense, according to a recent, representative survey by Profession.hu.

The company Christmas party is an unmissable tradition in most workplaces – the majority of employees surveyed (54%) reported that, as they do every year, they organize such an event this year as well. Few companies have given up on this form of festive team building: only one in twenty employees indicated that although there was a joint festive program last year, it will not be held this year.

What do we give as gifts?

In almost half of the cases, the programs also include small or large surprises: 44% of those surveyed receive a gift package from their employer, and the company surprises the children of every fifth employee with something. A smaller part of companies (11%) prepares experience-based or team-building surprises during the holiday season.

Among the gift-giving habits of colleagues, the two most common are self-organized gift-giving in small groups, and the “draw”, when employees draw lots to determine who will give a gift to whom. 38% of them prepare a package for each other in an informal way, in a smaller circle, while 22% of those surveyed indicated that they would choose the lottery.

Do we like it?

Two-thirds of those who are going to a company Christmas party this year do so outside of working hours, while in the case of nearly one-third (30%), the program is part of working hours. The majority of Hungarian employees therefore have more than one year’s experience of company Christmas parties, but not everyone evaluates them equally. The majority of those surveyed (59%) are happy to participate in these events and generally have a good time. One-third (34%) answered that if they were organized, they would participate, but they would rather spend their time with someone else, and nearly as many (29%) consider these events to be an unnecessary waste of money. Nearly half (44%) of employees feel that their employer expects them to be present at the joint event.

“When and how an employer should hold a company Christmas event may depend on a number of factors in order for it to truly achieve its goal: to improve team cohesion and be a pleasant experience for everyone. Employers should consider what employees would prefer, which may also depend on the family situation of the majority: evening times are often less convenient for employees with young children. It is therefore worth asking the organizers in some way when and in what form colleagues would like to participate in such an event, what programs they would like – options can even be given in advance to keep the end result within realistic limits. This way, these programs have a greater chance of achieving their goal and employees can be more satisfied. In order to achieve flexibility, many companies use the solution of holding the event in the afternoon, during working hours. they eat together, where participants can then stay to chat, play board games or party if they wish – however, the latter activities take place outside working hours, so anyone who wants to go home can easily do so”

– said Alma Kispéter, Senior Recruitment and Selection Expert at Profession.hu.

How are we doing with the days off?

As the holidays approach, the topic of holidays is usually a cardinal question: how many days off do you have left at the end of the year, are they mandatory to take them, or can we count on them next year if they remain at all. The research revealed that decision-makers order mandatory holidays for 44% of employees on the days between Christmas and New Year’s Eve, while 40% of them still work the usual work schedule. 11% of them are required to be on call, and 7% receive extra days off for this period.

A quarter of employees are required to take all their leave this year, while the rest can carry over to next year if they wish. 10% have taken all their leave this year, and 28% are taking advantage of the opportunity to take any remaining leave from this year next year. Another 14% could have used their leave next year as well, but ended up taking it all this year.

During the holidays – due to the long break – many would have the opportunity to travel, yet most prefer to spend the holidays at home. 71% of employees are not planning to travel during this period, while 22% are – of whom 14% will specifically try to relax in their home country to recover from the hardships of the past period.