"Lock ins" in pubs and nightclubs - legal or grey area?

Biggins · 03-04-2011 11:34AM

Mr.Crinklewood wrote: »

Jo Brand.

As regards her, it just goes to show how wrong a person (me) can be.
I always thought for some bizarre reason she was a lesbian. I was totally wrong it seems.
She's married and had children according to an interview she did on TV!

(Still don't find her funny though)

Biggins · 03-04-2011 11:36AM

cursai wrote: »

Lock in's don't happen.
The bar manager cordially invites any of his faithful friends and companions who happen to in the public house at the time of closing for a few social drinks in his gaff. his friends are grateful for this show of hospitality and donate some monetary credits to his health!

What about the poor staff that are forced to stay and keep serving, for if they just leave, they could be sacked?
Not a question just for yourself cursai but to the forum in general.
I have friends that were/are doing this type of 'late' work and won't/don't get anything thing extra for it.

im invisible · 03-04-2011 11:41AM

Jimmy Garlic wrote: »

pubs should be allowed to close whenever they like

Savage Tyrant wrote: »

Including Good Friday...

R0ot wrote: »

Yes! Also on Christmas Day.

but they do, ALL day on them days.....

superfish · 03-04-2011 11:43AM

why would any normal person want to be locked in as by the end of the night all that remains is complete idiots and a nasty smell of ballsack plus most the good looking girls left hours ago

im invisible · 03-04-2011 11:46AM

Biggins wrote: »

What about the poor staff that are forced to stay and keep serving, for if they just leave, they could be sacked?
Not a question just for yourself cursai but to the forum in general.
I have friends that were/are doing this type of 'late' work and won't/don't get anything thing extra for it.

ive worked in a bar where this used to happen the (very) odd night, once theres not too many people in, you could have a few pints yourself, and have the craic. sure i'd be having a pint or two myself, whether they were there or not, and it never went on too late

OutlawPete · 03-04-2011 11:47AM

hatrickpatrick wrote: »

Just wondering how the system works with regard to "lock ins"?

Well, usually when everyone's being asked to leave, but you notice that there a good few folk smiling away and paying no attention to that request and not looking as if their fun is over at all, if anything perhaps just about to begin; have a quick word in the ear of the proprietor to see if you can join them. Chances are if you're sound, easy going and up for the craic, you'll be more than welcome.

hatrickpatrick wrote: »

The name "lock in" implies that you can't leave until it's properly over ..

Well, any I have been to have no problem turfing people out if they can't chill and join in with the festivities, so I don't see why you couldn't leave whenever you want. Once you appreciate of course that, what happens in a lock in, stays in a lock in.

Sunnyisland · 03-04-2011 11:48AM

Years ago i drank In a pub in cavan & every weekend after time was up we would all decamp into his sitting room were we would all continue drinking into the wee hours,great fun terrible hangovers.

Biggins · 03-04-2011 11:49AM

im invisible wrote: »

ive worked in a bar where this used to happen the (very) odd night, once theres not too many people in, you could have a few pints yourself, and have the craic. sure i'd be having a pint or two myself, whether they were there or not, and it never went on too late

Yea, I've been in similar situations (me doing the drinking in my youth).
On the rare occasion I came across lads that just wanted to get home to bed after along day and that were on at ten the next morning to do the opening shift.
I would leave when I came across such staff just wanting to get home too.

cloneslad · 03-04-2011 11:58AM

realies wrote: »

Years ago i drank In a pub in cavan

We've all done things we aren't proud of

mcgarry098 · 03-04-2011 12:38PM

if ya work in a pub lock-ins are the biggest load of ****! been workin till usually 5 because of them, one night it was 6 30,. its ridiculus. dont get paid extra,. you do get free drink though but theres no point in drinkin at 4 in the mornin!

Biggins · 03-04-2011 12:41PM

mcgarry098 wrote: »

if ya work in a pub lock-ins are the biggest load of ****! been workin till usually 5 because of them, one night it was 6 30,. its ridiculus. dont get paid extra,. you do get free drink though but theres no point in drinkin at 4 in the mornin!

Indeed. I know young (married and have kids) staff that are trapped by employers taking the piss over the advantage they have on them.

Berns · 03-04-2011 01:58PM

Never been till one

Any time was out drinkin usually ended up goin till club or sumfin. Maybe once but think that was it more or less actually closin

mikemac · 03-04-2011 02:33PM

Lock in's were a pain!

Finish your bar shift at and the manager instructs you to serve his friends.
So the bar you swept, clean and mopped is ruined again and now you have to serve a shower of drunks who were drinking since the afternoon before when "their team" in some UK city they've never been to and have no connection with won some game kicking a ball around a pitch

Never mind you are due for breakfast shift at 8am and a host of employment laws are being broken :mad:

Drink driving is a killer.
But falling asleep at the wheel is also a killer and I've no doubt people in Ireland die every year coming home from crazy shifts.
If I was working breakfast shift the next day I used to demand a taxi, take it out of petty cash

Steodonn · 03-04-2011 04:19PM

Only lock-ins I've ever been it would be the owner and some of the trusted locals pulling the pints. Never seen the staff stay. Cant imagine publicans getting away with that if they weren't willing to pay the staff extra

garv123 · 03-04-2011 04:32PM

ive often been told to stay serving after hours. lock the doors and pull down the blinds is the first thing that is done. anyone leaving leaves through the back door. (the juke box still blaring gives it away most times) My choice is stay there serving or find another job.
The landlord has been caught plenty of times and has about 4 court cases coming up. i have often been their myself after work drinking with the rest of the staff and the landlord till all hours. I'd imagine this is legal since we're sitting in the kitchen and the drink is coming from the bar but its free. so he's not selling alcohol after hours.

Eric Cartman · 03-04-2011 04:42PM

superfish wrote: »

why would any normal person want to be locked in as by the end of the night all that remains is complete idiots and a nasty smell of ballsack plus most the good looking girls left hours ago

pulling byors isnt the only reason we like drinkin

mcgarry098 wrote: »

you do get free drink though but theres no point in drinkin at 4 in the mornin!

in my day there was always a point in drinking at 4am , and if you can knock back 2 pints an hour thatd probably be more than youd be paid for that hour anyway , no point in drinking , jog on with that kind of talk

slavetothegrind · 03-04-2011 04:53PM

if i were staffing a lock in i'd be imposing a 1 euro "tip" on all drinks after closing time, reimbursing myself if you will!

I'd say you'd be hard pressed to find a publican eager to throw out a decent crowd of drinkers nowadays.

bc dub · 03-04-2011 05:04PM

i think the recession has increased the amount of lock ins going on around the country.

i know of two bars in dublin that have regular lock ins, one in particular that does it every week without fail. technically it is a hotel but the majority of patrons after 3am are not residents.

Mr. Loverman · 03-04-2011 05:21PM

I used to work in a (now closed) lap dancing bar in Dublin where we'd have lock ins with the girls after work.

There would be mad orgies. Got loads of them pregnant.

Copper23 · 03-04-2011 05:25PM

Man, Its not like you go p to the bar and exchange your cash at a lockin but if you are invited to a lockin and are neither owner nor staff you'd have to be pretty bad to go there, take the free drink and leave nothing behind.

craftypaddy · 03-04-2011 05:32PM

we have lock ins every weekend in the village i live, darts on a friday often ends up 3 or 4 in the morning with poker going on too, monday darts is at least two in the morning, when the guards come we all hide in the kitchen, funny as hell after a skin full.... long live the late drinks, xmas day and good friday was a knock on the back door job

Aoifey! · 03-04-2011 05:36PM

My local has a lock in every Saturday. There's normally only one person on the bar and she runs the place, her brother is there sometimes too if it's busy. Move evryone away from the windows, lock the doors, turn down the juke box and the drink flowing.

neaideabh · 03-04-2011 05:42PM

It is very common for publicans to have some sort of rapport with menbers of the gardai whther on professional terms or friendly terms so Guards turn a blind eye to After hours drinking.

Nearly all the time in every town guards know there are lock ins. Unless a pub has a reputation for anti-social behaviour or blatent abuse of the laws, Guards will not take action. Every now and again they "show their face" to give the impression that they mean business!

Furthermore, I worked in a pub, it was a friday afternoon... i was there working away and the boss was around. Three guards (one senior member and two young female guards) walked in. The senior member was talking away with the boss and asked me to put the kettle on. I prepared 3 teas/coffees and handed them to the guards. The boss just looked at the senior guard and asked him if he wanted one to which he replied "Go on so". So, then the boss took his cup and put it under the whiskey optic and put a shot into his cup.

They stayed for about 15 minutes then 20 minutes after that they went flying by the front of the pub in the squadcar with the sirens on and the lights on.

The relationships that publicans have with the authorities leave our licencing laws open to abuse.... But I'm not complaining!!!

Dermighty · 03-04-2011 05:51PM

Though both situations arise, this is my experience:

REALITY Lock in = pub is closed, still serving drink, charging people for the drink.

NOT REALITY Lock in = pub is closed, still serving drink to people as part of a private party type thing

90% of the lock in's I've seen have been the county GAA team and Gardaí.

Misty Chaos · 03-04-2011 05:52PM

I've never being in a lock in.

Guess I don't know how to work the system.

Doublin · 03-04-2011 06:00PM

Agree with the above. When I worked as night porter in my late teens in an well known all-hours hotel, which never closed the bar if regulars wanted a drink. Guards, well-known ex-Dublin players, publicans & other local businessmen were all regulars, even the local political parties had their drinks there after their meetings.. We were never once raided or questioned about the late drinks.

Also, I don't know about now but in the mid-90's guard's changed shift at 6am. At 6:01 I'd have a couple of them at the door looking for a couple of pints. Made no difference to me, all my work was done by then but you couldn't have much banter with them. At around 7:30 a regular used knock & have his bushmills or two before heading to work. I was finished at 8 so would normally have a pint with him as soon as the receptionist came in. Good times, lots of stories & very educational in many areas!

Kimono-Girl · 03-04-2011 06:12PM

Misty Chaos wrote: »

I've never being in a lock in.

Guess I don't know how to work the system.

Flirt with the bouncers!*

*I kid i kid, i am good friends with one of the guys working security there, he introduced me to the owner/other staff and we all got on great still chat to this day, thats how i got invited, the owner himself had no issues with handing out the free drink in the good days as he'd make enough money at the door/sales of drinks.

god i miss those days, used to never have to pay entry to the club nights either, (to be fair i used do coffee runs at my own expense for the bouncers especially on the winter nights as a thank you, what goes around comes around) and the fun that was had was epic!

van der vart · 03-04-2011 06:34PM

as a seasoned drinker, i think the real lock ins were when we had , what was called the holy hour on Sunday,s.
all pubs had to close from 2 till 4.
then tv sport raised its head, no one wanted to go home because the match was coming on.

Now we have the opposite of lock in which are early houses, my local opens at 10 on a Sunday morning:D

stovelid · 03-04-2011 07:03PM

cursai wrote: »

Lock in's don't happen.
The bar manager cordially invites any of his faithful friends and companions who happen to in the public house at the time of closing for a few social drinks in his gaff. his friends are grateful for this show of hospitality and donate some monetary credits to his health!

My mate owns a city-centre bar and I'm texting this to him for immediate use.

van der vart · 03-04-2011 07:47PM

stovelid wrote: »

My mate owns a city-centre bar and I'm texting this to him for immediate use.

your breaking the law if you are on a licenced premises after hours.If your not an emploee, FACT:D

"Lock ins" in pubs and nightclubs - legal or grey area?

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