Sorry for the long long post but need a good rant and your advice on dealing with this in the future. Thanks in advance...
I have an annual Christmas party I have come to dread, it's a company with a few hundred employees in Southern California. They have an open bar and hire me from 6 to midnight. This party would never happen if anyone had any sense as far as potential sexual harassment, drunk driving, fights, dancing on tables, behavior that should really get people fired anywhere else. Anyway, I put up with awfully annoying drunks and the party nearly pays my rent for December so whatever.
The problem is, as we near midnight it seems like there are really no "adults" left. No one in charge. The 30-40 still there are doing shots and hammered as heck. The owner is a French dude, most of the employees are Mexican with a handful of Frenchies. At midnight there are typically 30 or so Mexicans and about 10 French and they are the drunkest, worst behaved, looking for trouble, nothing else to do. 1 guy is the owner's son and usually ends up fighting with his girlfriend and some of the other French may be relatives or whatever so they act privilidged like they can do whatever they want, they are the ones dancing on the tables because they are untouchable. Between the extreme intoxication and frenchness they are impossible to understand.
Anyway, this time at 11:30 two french guys climb up onto the stage and start dancing all goofy with people yelling at them. I am on a rickety temporary stage (assembled scaffolding about 2 feet high really). There is about 1-2 feet in front of my booth and 3 feet on either side so they are squeezing against my sh*t. I leave them alone and know I am going to have to kick them off in a few minutes but it's fine for a minute. One of them takes off a heavy leather jacket and swings it over his head wildly and onto the dance floor to the sounds of cheers. Just above my head and laptop which is on a stand, mind you. One of them is very tall and bulky, he's the drunker one and would not be sober enough to swing his jacket if he tried. It's clearly only a matter of time before someone comes flying into my setup and everything goes down.
Smaller (jacket swinger) guy asks "Why?" when I ask them to get down. Bigger guy, who is just meandering and dancing everywhere just says "fuck you!" and tries to put up a middle finger in a general direction but can't quite. I tell the bigger guy I'm going to stop the song and it won't be fun, he is unresponsive. Smaller guy finally asks "Oh you want us to get down" in broken spoiled-french-boy accent. Yes, please, and I put my hand on his shoulder. Felt a little bad about being rude to him. He gets down and I see him talking to other people on the dancefloor. Big guy finally gets down, I don't remember why. I didn't feel unsafe they are just freaking annoying and there is no one in charge who is sober or acting like an adult, like I'm in a classroom full of 6 foot tall 3 year-olds.
During the second to the last song, some fists break out and some guy who wasn't dancing is flailing wildly, not sure who he was trying to hit but he is slowly dragged down by about 6 men. Later learned he was not an employee but the brother of an office staff lady who is the one who hires me every year. This rumble (picture garfield's fighting cloud of dust) started from the middle of the room and came to the dance floor about 10 feet in front of me to out the door. Too close for comfort, I just want to get out of there with all of my stuff in once piece.
I learned later a guy standing next to the door in a black t-shirt was the "security guard" but he was freaking useless.
Many years in the past the drunks try to get me to stay after midnight until 2am, this year the venue didn't allow that. I told them when they hired me this year they needed to provide a hotel room if I was to do that but thankfully it was not an issue. Still, shutting down was a pain anyway. One of the women who does the hiring (office staff) wanted two more songs at 12:05, I allowed her to get on the mic and ask the drunks for a song suggestion. Was too drunk to do this, dropped the mic. (Note to self, undent mic cover or order new one). Just before that had been the fight and a french guy who looked pretty sober motioned for me to just cut it. Forgot to mention during the 3rd to last song I'd run to talk to the bartenders and the big oaf drunk guy was stumbling up to the booth looking for a button to push.
As I'm packing up I'm thinking I really really hate these people. It pays decent but I definitely don't like the atmosphere that comes around as midnight nears. I am the only one who isn't 100% wasted and stumbling around breaking sh*t. This is the second time an almost-fight has erupted, the last time was an employee who seemed kind of simple and everyone just dragged him outside. I highly doubt he was fired.
Thinking about steps I can take next year to ensure the safety of myself and equipment. Lay down some rules when the party is booked.
1. I won't play past midnight ever again. I am glad this year that wasn't an option because I would have had to be battling employees demanding I play longer. (The company pays from 6-12).
2. There must be a security guard. They only had one this year because the venue requires it. He was useless. Stood by the door with no uniform, no one was aware he was there (including me).
3. I need to make sure to touch base with security and ask them be prepared to help with unruly guests.
I hate this gig, I haven't even gone into the ways it is frustrating in non-violent ways haha...
What else would you suggest?
(PS I am not racist against French people, but for the most part these people perpetuate the stereotype that they are all pretentious a-holes)
I have an annual Christmas party I have come to dread, it's a company with a few hundred employees in Southern California. They have an open bar and hire me from 6 to midnight. This party would never happen if anyone had any sense as far as potential sexual harassment, drunk driving, fights, dancing on tables, behavior that should really get people fired anywhere else. Anyway, I put up with awfully annoying drunks and the party nearly pays my rent for December so whatever.
The problem is, as we near midnight it seems like there are really no "adults" left. No one in charge. The 30-40 still there are doing shots and hammered as heck. The owner is a French dude, most of the employees are Mexican with a handful of Frenchies. At midnight there are typically 30 or so Mexicans and about 10 French and they are the drunkest, worst behaved, looking for trouble, nothing else to do. 1 guy is the owner's son and usually ends up fighting with his girlfriend and some of the other French may be relatives or whatever so they act privilidged like they can do whatever they want, they are the ones dancing on the tables because they are untouchable. Between the extreme intoxication and frenchness they are impossible to understand.
Anyway, this time at 11:30 two french guys climb up onto the stage and start dancing all goofy with people yelling at them. I am on a rickety temporary stage (assembled scaffolding about 2 feet high really). There is about 1-2 feet in front of my booth and 3 feet on either side so they are squeezing against my sh*t. I leave them alone and know I am going to have to kick them off in a few minutes but it's fine for a minute. One of them takes off a heavy leather jacket and swings it over his head wildly and onto the dance floor to the sounds of cheers. Just above my head and laptop which is on a stand, mind you. One of them is very tall and bulky, he's the drunker one and would not be sober enough to swing his jacket if he tried. It's clearly only a matter of time before someone comes flying into my setup and everything goes down.
Smaller (jacket swinger) guy asks "Why?" when I ask them to get down. Bigger guy, who is just meandering and dancing everywhere just says "fuck you!" and tries to put up a middle finger in a general direction but can't quite. I tell the bigger guy I'm going to stop the song and it won't be fun, he is unresponsive. Smaller guy finally asks "Oh you want us to get down" in broken spoiled-french-boy accent. Yes, please, and I put my hand on his shoulder. Felt a little bad about being rude to him. He gets down and I see him talking to other people on the dancefloor. Big guy finally gets down, I don't remember why. I didn't feel unsafe they are just freaking annoying and there is no one in charge who is sober or acting like an adult, like I'm in a classroom full of 6 foot tall 3 year-olds.
During the second to the last song, some fists break out and some guy who wasn't dancing is flailing wildly, not sure who he was trying to hit but he is slowly dragged down by about 6 men. Later learned he was not an employee but the brother of an office staff lady who is the one who hires me every year. This rumble (picture garfield's fighting cloud of dust) started from the middle of the room and came to the dance floor about 10 feet in front of me to out the door. Too close for comfort, I just want to get out of there with all of my stuff in once piece.
I learned later a guy standing next to the door in a black t-shirt was the "security guard" but he was freaking useless.
Many years in the past the drunks try to get me to stay after midnight until 2am, this year the venue didn't allow that. I told them when they hired me this year they needed to provide a hotel room if I was to do that but thankfully it was not an issue. Still, shutting down was a pain anyway. One of the women who does the hiring (office staff) wanted two more songs at 12:05, I allowed her to get on the mic and ask the drunks for a song suggestion. Was too drunk to do this, dropped the mic. (Note to self, undent mic cover or order new one). Just before that had been the fight and a french guy who looked pretty sober motioned for me to just cut it. Forgot to mention during the 3rd to last song I'd run to talk to the bartenders and the big oaf drunk guy was stumbling up to the booth looking for a button to push.
As I'm packing up I'm thinking I really really hate these people. It pays decent but I definitely don't like the atmosphere that comes around as midnight nears. I am the only one who isn't 100% wasted and stumbling around breaking sh*t. This is the second time an almost-fight has erupted, the last time was an employee who seemed kind of simple and everyone just dragged him outside. I highly doubt he was fired.
Thinking about steps I can take next year to ensure the safety of myself and equipment. Lay down some rules when the party is booked.
1. I won't play past midnight ever again. I am glad this year that wasn't an option because I would have had to be battling employees demanding I play longer. (The company pays from 6-12).
2. There must be a security guard. They only had one this year because the venue requires it. He was useless. Stood by the door with no uniform, no one was aware he was there (including me).
3. I need to make sure to touch base with security and ask them be prepared to help with unruly guests.
I hate this gig, I haven't even gone into the ways it is frustrating in non-violent ways haha...
What else would you suggest?
(PS I am not racist against French people, but for the most part these people perpetuate the stereotype that they are all pretentious a-holes)
