Just got in from my work Christmas luncheon, and we got a pretty awesome gift as per usual this time of year. I work at a Hilton Brand Hotel in Southern Ontario, and as such, we get a free nights stay during the month of January and $150 gift certificate to The Keg Steakhouse and Bar from the owner of the hotel. This has been going on since I have been employed here, and it's a great way to kick off the New Year. I can't wait til I enter the work force and see what lays in store for me (as I plan on working this job the rest of my life) FOCUS: What's your bonus looking like this year? ALT-FOCUS What's the worst bonus you have ever received that your employer thought was the best thing since sliced bread?
This year, the fact that I'm gainfully employed, and making pretty good cash, is bonus enough. Too many of my friends and colleagues are having to work shit jobs for minimal cash just to get by. Best bonus I ever got was a totally unexpected percentage of revenue I brought into a company I was working for one year. I was personally responsible for over 40% of the revenue of a 60 person consulting company, so they felt it was more than deserved. I paid cash for a car with it.
I used to receive a bonus from my employer, not so common for servers. He based it off of how long you were employed. Last Christmas I should've been looking at $500. Not much, but more than I had. The staff attended the Christmas "party" anticipating cash. We wait two hours. Open bar made this time passable. Suddenly, it is over. We are all leaving and wondering where the fuck our bonuses are. The following week, on payday, we each receive a thank you card from some charity that provides sports equipment to kids being treated at the Children's Hospital. Because unwell and dying children need basketballs and baseball mitts. Instead of giving us our individual bonuses, he opted to donate $1,500 to the organization and call it good. Cheap ass. An option to donate would've been better received.
The company I work for has a formula for calculating how much a bonus the employees get. Something like current salary and % of growth of company during the year. It works out to around $1500 before tax. This year I was told it would be $1800 before tax, so around $1100-1200. This is a pretty kick ass bonus. This year, I'm using my bonus to help with a down payment on the first house my wife and I bought.
The absolute best bonus I have received was a gun safe with a digital lock on it. Inside was a SigP226. My company got a new president a couple years back, and before it was a privately owned company and profits were divided as bonuses, and people were happy. Now he ceased bonuses all together, and ceased raises too. There are people here who haven't had a raise in two years even though our profitability is through the roof. For example, last December we set our all time record month. This year, the sales department had the monthly goal of last year plus 10%. They smashed that in 10 days, and we are looking to do a couple million more in sales, and the company has hardly any debts. But we don't see a penny of that. It all goes to the higher ups.
Back in the good-ole days, we would get an extra paycheck as a yearly bonus (sometimes two extra paychecks), plus a $500 holiday bonus. These were typically given on our last work day of the year during our staff lunch that the company provided. Of course we were told a couple of weeks ago that there will be no extra paycheck. On top of that, instead of the company buying lunch, it will be a pot-luck that the employees are providing. Cheap fuckers.
The first ad agency I worked for was SSC&B. People would ask, "What does that stand for?" and the standard reply was, "Some shitty Christmas bonus." But what the agency did was actually pretty cool. They threw a big Christmas party at the Waldorf-Astoria...open bar, two carving stations, an obscene buffet, and there was a Christmas tree on the stage decorated with little gift boxes. Everyone's employee number was put in a bowl and if your number was called, you got to go up and select a package off the tree. Some presents were simply bulk amounts of clients' products (10 cases of diet Coke, or 10 cases of Heineken), but they also gave away 4 days in St. Marten's for 2 plus the extra 4 days off so you didn't have to use up your vacation time; limo, dinner at Luctece and two tickets to any broadway show you wanted; an entire luxury suite at Madison Square Garden for either a NY Rangers' game or a Knick's game (that's like 10 tickets, open bar and food). The last bonus I got was a box of pears from Harry & David's. I miss the 80s.
"Bonus" is a dirty word in the "thriving" Michigan construction industry. Granted, I am very lucky to have gainful employment, but it still sucks. Last year's bonus was a $2500.00 check and a $300 pair of Nikon Monarch binoculars. This year it was a company sweatshirt.
We got fucked on raises this year, so we are getting a holiday bonus (in addition to our quarterly bonus) that is supposed to approximate our "raise backpay", i.e., the extra $ we would have earned from our proper review date had we received our normal 5% plus raise. We also had a shitty christmas dinner on restaurant row in NYC...However, I am not bitching about themoney (only the shitty Xmas dinner food), since I am pleased to be employed at this time....unless my ocmpany would willingly lay me off and pay me severance....
Not only do we not receive bonuses, I will be unable to attend the one small bone our company throws us - a holiday cocktail hour with a buffet. The Mrsanthropic, on the other hand, will be receiving a bonus, as well as a share of the profits from the sale of her company. When we first calculated the amount, we thought it would be X - about enough to pay for some expensive landscaping and structural work we need done around the house. It turns out they threw her some extra shares, and she will now be getting more than 5 times the expected amount. Not "fuck you" money, but significant.
I gave out bonuses to two of my employees this year. 5k to my one year employee 500 to my 3 month employee. Guess who was more grateful? The 3 monther
My bonus should pay for the gas I need to go and pick up the cheque*. *-Yes, I spelled it "cheque". That's how we spell it here. Weird, huh?
I was in my first real job for one and a quarter years before I got laid off 2 months ago. I was working under contract for another firm. That other firm provided all the office supplies, computer, parking... Basically I costed no overhead for my company, yet generated a lot of money for them. On top of that, I had to budget in my projects for the company I was working for to pay for my costs. So I saw how much my company was charging. While I wasn't generating an obscene amount of profit, the percentage of profit for my costs was extremely high. I didn't get a bonus at Christmas. That one confused me, but I was the low man on the totem pole, so I didn't have a place to complain.
I work for a global fortune 100 company. I got an Amazon gift card for 20 bucks. And I couldn't be happier. A lot of times in the corporate world they over look the peons. At least here they acknowledge we exist. I wasn't expecting jack shit! This is pretty awesome. This gives me the chance to buy Pete and Pete on DVD. I would have never spent my own money on it, but I will happily spend gift money on it.
Oh I remember the good ol days when the economy was strong and we were riding high. My company use to give out bonus checks and then release a company memo about who the top bonus earners were. Those days are over. I think this year people are getting $100 for every year they've been with the organization which isn't half bad. I found out myself and one of my sales guys are getting a super secret bonus we can never speak of to anyone. Tickets to a certain "once in a lifetime" event taking place in Boston this winter. Hmmm... I hope it's Ice Capades!
I was laid off about 3 months ago and refused their "offer" of rehire (I would be making so much less than unemployment and about half of what I used to make). I used to get tips from renters of the place I worked and for years averaged about $3000 cash, many bottles of booze and other gifts. It is really missed this year.