Monday, December 22, 2008
Office Parties
It is permissible to attend the party if necessary as long as the following conditions are met. (The permissibility of the entertainment and similar issues, while worthy of discussion, will not be addressed in this post.)
If the event is held at a non kosher restaurant or an exclusively non kosher venue such as a country club then it is forbidden to attend at all because of Maaris Ayin.
If the venue has both kosher and non kosher caterers, as is common in many hotels, and the affair is catered by the non kosher caterer, then one is permitted to attend the affair, they may however not eat even if their food happens to be kosher. This would apply to an event held at the office itself or a private home as well; one may attend, but not eat at all.
If the event is catered by the kosher caterer then of course they can enjoy fully.
UPDATE 12/23
for further study you may want to read this excellent article
Rabbi Tzvi Hirsch Haber is sought after by all who know him for his Halachic and practical advice. His keen ability to put complicated matters into a digestible perspective coupled with his ability to get the facts, make him the perfect blogger to help us all “Do It Right”.
