Holiday Safety Tips
The holiday season is now upon us. We all look forward to 
celebrating with family, friends, and colleagues. However the holidays are also times where busy people become careless and vulnerable to theft, drinking and driving, distracted driving, and other holiday crimes. We want to ensure your holidays are safe and happy; therefore, we have provided safety tips for shopping and company holiday parties.
Shopping Safety
In South Florida, many Floridian’s remember the kidnapping and murder of Nancy Bochicchio and her daughter after a day of shopping at The Town Center Mall in Boca Raton. Unfortunately, there are no set standards that regulated shopping mall safety. Below are some safety tips to help you reduce your risk of becoming a victim this holiday season.
- Be aware and alert to predators in the parking lot, avoid big vans and distractions like carrying lots of packages or talking on your cell phone
- Quickly get into your car, lock the door and leave
- Plan ahead on when to go and where to park
- Always park close and in a well-lighted and monitored parking lot
- Never get out of the car if it is not safe to do so
- Return to the store if anyone looks or acts suspicious or if you are being followed
- Ask a security guard to walk you to your vehicle
- Never leave children unattended, do not use video arcades or toy stores as baby sitters
- Women should keep their purse close to their body and men should keep their wallet in their front pocket
- Keep purchase manageable and consolidate them into one bag if possible
- Avoid darkened hallways, stairwells, and bathrooms that are not in high-traffic areas
- Don’t be afraid to scream or yell for help
- Call the police and notify mall security of any criminal activity
Office Holiday Party Safety
Office parties provide an opportunity to lift employee morale and celebrate organizational successes as a cohesive team. Whether an at home celebration or a business party, event hosts have a responsibility to keep all their guests safe, while still having fun. Below are some safety tips to help you mitigate your potential risk of the two main issues that often arise at an office holiday party- intoxication and harassment.
- Schedule the event on a weekday, as people generally drink less during the week.
- Remind employees about any company policies on conduct and substance abuse before the party
- Make valet parking mandatory or consider having a car keys check-in. Collect and tag each guest’s car keys, and at the conclusion of the party, only return keys to designated drivers.
- Use professional bar tenders who can monitor and stop serving anyone who appears intoxicated
- Consider using drink tickets to limit and control the amount of drinking
- Consider holding your party off premises (hotel or restaurant) and make sure the servers have a liquor license
- Make sure to serve heavy food so guests are not drinking on an empty stomach
- Provide a designated driver or transportation assistance to anyone who has had too much to drink and is unable to drive (provide a limo, town car, taxi cab, hotel room at venue, call a family member, etc.)
- Also remind employees about your sexual harassment policies before the party
- Inform all employees that they have a duty to report sexual assault, sexual harassment that they experience or witness
