ColdEyesWarmHeart wrote:
If the party is in the office, you could offer to work from home if possible. If it is elsewhere, offer to stay behind and man the phones (someone usually has to).
When we have parties at work I make a brief appearance and then go right back to work. Since I don't have a car no one expects me to show up at work parties given outside of work hours if they aren't easy to get to and even if they are, I just explain I'm not festive. My boss once told me it doesn't look good but I reminded him I don't want to be promoted and do my job well so it should have no bearing on my job security. I'm union so I can't get fired for not attending an outside of work party
While it isn't honest, would you be comfortable claiming you can't join in for religious reasons? Some religions (like Jehovah's Witness) don't celebrate ANY holidays or birthdays.