In regard to the newspaper carrier, I only get a physical paper on Sunday and have never met the carrier but I sent him $25 . Our bill for the year is about $65 so it is rather out of balance but less seems like an insult and the paper is always here by 5:30 am.
Fang, I still think,“Converting this to a formal thank you note isn’t necessary. Some acknowledgement is decent.” I dont think anyone here is advocating for a note from the service people we gift to. The one comment was about not even a thanks scribbled on a ripped open envelope. (Frankly. I’d have thought the cleaning person could have put the ripped envelope in the trash.)
@lookingforward I was just typing exactly what you are saying. I never expected a formal written thank you note. A simple thank you written on the envelope would have been appreciated. I know she had a pen because she would use the envelope to write a list of cleaning supplies I needed to purchase before her next visit.
I give myself a spa day.
An email or in person acknowledgement would be appropriate. I have coached some of my younger staff to do that (to thank our department head), even when the bonus is not as good as expected. As a manager, there were times when I have tried very hard to get my people paid and couldn’t make it happen. I always remember when someone is gracious enough to acknowledge that.
Question…my husband gets his bonus…with a thank you from his boss. Is he supposed to write a thank you for the thank you?
^I don’t think there is anything wrong with one acknowledgment on both sides. Maybe not necessary but not wrong. The boss thanks him for his work and gives him a bonus with a verbal or written bonus. Nothing wrong with your husband saying “I appreciate that you are acknowledging my work” or “thank you - it’s a pleasure to work for you/this company”. Once each side, then done.
Yes, I send the boss a thank you email for the bonus. I also ask if in lieu of cash, I can have extra days off.
I think it also comes into play whether this is a big company you work for, and your boss is giving you a bonus as part of the corporate-wide policy or if you work for a small business where the boss is the actual owner and that money is coming out of his pocket, theoretically.
I agree with @surfcity . A couple of my past employers were large corporations and my boss had no say so about year end bonuses. Who would I send that thank you note to, HR? I don’t think so. OTOH, when I worked for a very small company and received a gift basket I did write a thank you note to the president/owner who sent it.
My dh never received a “Christmas bonus” in over four decades. Sometimes he received an incentive compensation payment late in the first quarter after year end numbers were finalized. It was based on a formula that varied according to one’s rank and was considered part of one’s negotiated total compensation. A thank you note would have raised eyebrows.
Over the years, a few of dh’s bosses gave all direct reports a bottle of champagne or some pricey chocolates. Thank you notes were sent for those gifts.
Common sense and basic courtesy guides people to thank someone for a holiday bonus. Probably not to a large employer, unless there is someone whom is directly responsible for designating it.
I think it would be obvious that it’s in ones own interest to show gratitude to a small employer, of whom the bonus is likely coming out of their own pocket. If you don’t seem grateful, your bonus might shrink or disappear. If you are appreciative, likely more will come your way. People don’t like to be taken for granted, and unless it is part of a contract, a Christmas bonus is not an entitlement.
How small is small?
My husbands bonus is tied to the company profits. It’s a smaller (300 employees) sole proprietorship…so I guess the money technically is coming out of his boss’s profits. The %age of bonus is based on the profit DH generates.
Does this warrant a thank you note?