Another train of thought after listening to a blog AND after arriving at work today to find out it is yet another person in the person’s birthday and there is a cake.
How does your office handle birthdays?
How do you WISH they handled birthdays?!
There are a lot of factors of course. Size of office members being one. Also, whether or not you are a “birthday person” in general. I happen to be someone who truly does not like my birthday. I generally can’t wait for the day to be over with (weird, I know).
I’m all for an occasional office food treat. When staff brings in leftover food or someone baked an extra loaf of pumpkin bread and brings it in to share…nice! And I feel this is more “optional” - have it if you like, pass by it if you don’t!
But birthdays. It feels more of an “obligation” to partake. Especially in a smaller office or department. "What do you MEAN you don’t want a piece of this grocery store cake that really isn’t that good?! " (sarcasm) - and then you get nailed for being the office mate who is on the outs and they label you “health nut”.
Does your office do sweet treats? Gifts? Lunches out? Nothing? Celebrate every single birthday? Celebrate monthly?
(fact: Sometimes I do really enjoy the treat. Sometimes I’ve been known to take a cupcake under peer pressure and then discard it at my desk.)
Personally I’d rather see a quarterly potluck breakfast or lunch. Everyone who had a birthday can be recognized and then chat about (or not) how their birthday was.
I work in a small office and birthdays are celebrated if the person with a birthday bring in a breakfast treat. We do have some that are very health conscience so it’s usually a variety of doughnuts, a veggie tray and juice.
It got really crazy in my office. Yes, it’s nice to celebrate, but at one point it became people hanging around for an hour or so in the afternoon, not answering the phones, not working. Multiply that by 30 times, and it’s way too much.
I decided in the long run it was less expensive and more generous to give people their birthdays off. Everyone loves it and we’re not bombarded with cake.
^^^ This was one of the things that people said if they could have any perk on their work birthday that would be it - the day off. In fact, the discussion was that younger people sort of expect to not work on their birthday - and older people like us are like “take a birthday off??? WHY?!” Haha.
In one office setting I worked in, a department of about 100 people, the department had and paid for a monthly gathering to acknowledge all birthdays that month. They would order a big cake from a good bakery and have a whole spread of sweet and savory, healthy and unhealthy items. Something to look forward to, a morale booster (free food!), created a little departmental camaraderie. Folks could hang and chat a little or just grab and go if they were busy. Worked well.
What worked for us: the birthday person could decide if they wanted to celebrate their birthday. It was up to them to bring in any treats for the office. We made a general announcement when it was time to distribute, and people could come if they were available/wanted to. Some (on diets) came to wish the person happy birthday but did not partake.
My birthday is in the summer when it’s always really hot, so I’ve done an ice cream sundae bar, ice cream sandwiches, popsicles, etc. I love ice cream. After the celebration, I left a note on the break-room table letting people know there were leftovers in the freezer. I worked in an IT department with lots of young guys, who were usually happy to eat whatever was available.
I worked some part-'times hours in a small music school. I did not have full time status, so did not attend school faculty meetings that salaried employees attended. Birthday celebrations were held during these meetings. OK with me that I missed out, I don’t particularly like cake. However, I was more than taken aback when, following my own birthday which had gone unnoticed by anyone, the director informed me that it was customary for the b-day person to bring a cake or treat that could be shared with the staff. As I felt there was little effort made to include us part-timers in the life of the school, I replied that I didn’t celebrate my b-day and considered the date private, not public information. I find it hard to respect “traditions” that are imposed.
H was just complaining about work birthdays yesterday. At one time, someone would bake a cake & they’d have a quick gathering to acknowledge the birthday. Now, a homemade cake isn’t good enough - everyone needs to chip in & buy a fancy cake. H’s boss is turning 60, and some coworkers want to do a party with gifts. H told them he will chip in for a group gift, but he asserts that he will not buy an individual gift because “60 year old men do NOT buy each other birthday presents - we left that behind in grade school.”
When I first arrived at my office 5 years ago, certain people merited a group celebration, while others were overlooked. We have gradually moved to a system of celebrating with some sort of treat if you want it. My birthday is late December, so it has been overlooked since I was a kid … and I have no issue with it being overlooked in the office. My work-spouse coworker also does not like to have her birthday celebrated, so we just buy each other cards & have everyone sign them “around” the time of our birthdays.
Frankly, I tend to agree with H … birthday parties are really for kids. It seems odd to me to have a birthday party at work for big people.
We only celebrate the boss’s birthday, which also happens to be two other people’s birthdays so they get to join in the cake. Otherwise, there are small groups that may go out to lunch or buy gifts. The only cakes we have are for life events like a wedding or a baby (rare these days with our aging work force) and when someone leaves. We have a smallish office, but really too big for a birthday celebration for each person. I am fine with the way it is.
I work in a City Law Department hybrid unit. Our divisional feels strongly about fostering camaraderie among the
staff, so I was volunteered to be on the birthday club committee. Staff opt in or out at our yearly meeting. We chip in $10 per person per party. We have really good pizza, a large mixed salad and a lovely cake from a good bakery. The birthday person gets a card and obnoxious balloons. It is in a conference room and counts as our lunch hour. We rotate people in so the floor is covered. . A few contribute and attend but do not want a celebration. They get a card and flowers (2 women). For our divisional’s party, 2 units come together for a larger more involved luncheon. Our department is big on building positive relationships. No one is forced to join the club and some have rotated in/out depending on the year with no hard feelings. It’s generally fine.
I’m in an office of less than 40. We celebrate once a month and the birthday people decide together what special treat they’d like. In August, they chose wings and that’s what we had at lunch. No pressure from anyone to participate but it gives us all a chance to socialize.
I’m sorry that’s seen as a bad thing among your co-workers. With the people I work with, and with the customers I’ve taken out to restaurants (which is a lot, that’s part of my job), eating healthy is considered a good thing.
I’m on (or am) the birthday committee in my department, which consists of three divisions. We have treats on one day in each month during which a department member has a birthday. I contact the month’s celebrants and ask if they have preferences (for or against) certain foods. The treats go on the “snack bar” and people can partake at their choosing and convenience. There is no gathering. Sometimes I send an email asking for volunteers to bring in the treats; other months, I bring in everything myself.
In addition, for people in my division, everyone signs a birthday card.
My birthday is this week. I hate my birthday and prefer to be alone and so am taking the day off as a vacation day.
I’m in an office of not quite 75. The office buys a cake on the second Wednesday of every month to acknowledge all birthdays in that calendar month. There are a dedicated few (maybe 8-10) people who hang around and waste time in the office kitchen that afternoon, but most people who want the cake take a piece and leave. In addition to that, some people choose to bring treats on their own birthdays or on the birthdays of an office mate.
@rosered55 you are a saint for doing all that - especially when you don’t like your own birthday (which I totally understand!)
Our interim chair’s birthday was today. We had a cake. We are a small office…of regulars - maybe 10-12 and then a flux of medical students/residents/faculty who wander in and out here and there. He was appreciative but also maybe just because I don’t like birthdays the chit chat always feels so awkward to me! I wanted to say, “ok everyone stop talking and let this man back to his office!!” (probably just me!!)
“With the people I work with, and with the customers I’ve taken out to restaurants (which is a lot, that’s part of my job), eating healthy is considered a good thing.”
I would think in general that is the case in a lot of places but sometimes you get the “born again” healthy eater that likes to lecture or try to convert everyone or talk about their healthy eating ad nauseam. and that’s no fun when the rest are enjoying an occasional treat.
We never had organized birthday celebrations at MegaCorp. You could bring something in if you wanted, but there was no committee or group that made sure everyone’s birthday was recognized. Sometimes co-workers would decorate a cubicle for a milestone birthday, but it was a rare event.
Add me to the birthday curmudgeon club. Good grief, once you are old enough to vote and drink, why does everyone else have to celebrate your special day? Not that bosses and teams shouldn’t recognize your contribution, but the whole birthday culture feels odd to me.
Since my son was in school, I’ve sent cupcakes etc to his lab. That way, his b/d is recognized without anyone else doing the prep. This year, I let his g/f get the treats.
I dislike the forced b/d contribute to a gift fund idea.
I worked for one company of about 100 where there was a celebration–snacks, savory and sweet, and beer and soft drinks–on a Friday afternoon each month for everyone whose birthday fell in that month. That worked well.
When i worked in a small, close-knit department of about 6 elsewhere, we went out to lunch together and treated the birthday girl/boy. That worked well also.
