Seven servers quit Paulaner tent after beer-drinking dispute

Seven beer servers at the Paulaner tent at Munich’s Oktoberfest quit during service on Monday after a dispute over alcohol at work, BR reported. Two had been caught drinking beer while on duty, briefly causing a shortage at the taps.

Fest host Lorenz Stiftl’s spokeswoman, Annette Baronikians, said he caught the two servers drinking beer in a room in front of a cold-storage area. Alcohol is strictly prohibited during work, and all staff had been told this clearly during their induction, she said. The reason the other five servers joined them was unclear.

Waitresses helped pour beer, and three servers from the neighbouring Hacker tent were loaned for an hour by its host, Thomas Roiderer. Two Paulaner brewers who were in the tent also helped. The Munich Oktoberfest hosts’ association said the guests did not notice the shortage and described the response as an example of the festival community helping one another. It added that alcohol at work could not be tolerated.

Baronikians said replacing the staff was not a problem: eight new beer servers had started by Tuesday morning.