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There are a lot of ways employers can reward their workers for outstanding performance, such as financial incentives, extra time off, or a personal parking spot near the office building. These gestures not only show appreciation but can also boost morale and create a more engaged and productive team.
However, sometimes management wants all the benefits without actually investing in them. So, Reddit user Vomirrhea asked everyone on the platform to share the worst bonuses they have ever received. Turns out, Scrooges can get really creative when they wish to save a penny.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
I worked in sales for a major wood products manufacturer. I sold record breaking volume to the tune of 51million for my territory. 2nd place sold 12million. I received $100 bonus. The guy in second place received a Rolex. The CEO made a joke about it at the sales conference. “Sometimes it’s best to come in 2nd place”.
I walked out. Typed my 2 week notice. And started my own company as a direct competitor of my former employer. I’m still in business. They are not.
Howl's sleeping castle 1 month ago
Either they were related or the CEO had feelings for the 2nd guy.
"The impact of bonuses on employee motivation and job satisfaction can vary, depending on how they're structured and perceived," Keith Spencer, Career Expert at FlexJobs, told Bored Panda.
For example, "performance-based bonuses can be effective for short-term motivation, but their impact can be temporary, particularly if other key elements are missing, like having autonomy, feeling valued, and being able to engage in meaningful work," Spencer explained.
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#2
Ice cream sandwiches.
We didn't get raises because "it was a tough year" and "your department didn't increase revenue" (we were R&D).
Our competitors brought an ice cream truck and parked it next door and were giving out free ice cream and applications and you could talk to their HR. They were specifically targeting our R&D team. Most of my coworkers went because it was a fancy ice cream truck they had seen but never bought from because it was expensive.
My director freaked out and told his EA to go get ice cream and told people not to go.
She came back with Value brand ice cream sandwiches. And only like 6 boxes. (There were 120 engineers in our department) I only remember the managers going over and getting them.
About two thirds of my team left within the next six months.
Edit: as my most up voted comment I'm gonna add - don't stay in that job. I did it for exactly as long as it took to vest and dipped. Best decision I ever made. They don't need you, go forth and be happy (or at least get paid what you deserve!).
#3
I worked at a big auction house for people with lots of money, doing manual labor. For Christmas we got a coupon for a cup of coffee.. from the coffee shop in the building. We had free coffee. I still have the coupon, it’s a nice reminder of what I walked away from.
"In terms of job satisfaction, bonuses are usually less important than other, more consistent factors like competitive base pay, opportunities for advancement, and a healthy work culture," Spencer said.
"So, while bonuses are nice, they work best when combined with other attributes that foster long-term satisfaction and intrinsic motivation."
#4
A Christmas card with signatures of the management team. It was Walmart ... why the hell do they think the associates would want a picture of the management team? We didn't even want to see the managers when we were working.
Stannous Flouride 1 month ago
Something begging to be doodled on/defaced and posted on the office bulletin board.
#5
Not me, but a co-worker. Every Christmas, a corp I used to work for had a Christmas raffle. There were 2-3 decent prizes, the rest was 5-10 dollar garbage. Everyone got a ticket, and we gathered in the big conference room and it started.
I was sitting with my co-worker, and finally his ticket number was called (by the HR head, who tried with obvious fake sincerity to pump up each item like it was gold)
He walks up...and gets a f****n keychain fob that if you whistled, it would beep so you could find your car keys.
He takes it, walks back to my table and says, "I'm a grown man, I've never lost my car keys in my life", tosses the thing on the table, and walks out the door.
He came in the next week, cleared out his area, and walked the f**k out and was never seen again.
It was the final straw for him, lol.
So, what makes a bonus bad? According to the career expert, the most common red flags are setting unrealistic targets, encouraging unhealthy competition, and requiring significantly more work.
A good bonus is the opposite of these things: it feels fair, achievable, and genuinely rewarding.
"It should be tied to clear criteria for attainability, timely in its delivery, consistent for all employees, and aligned with team and organizational goals," Spencer explained.
#6
I released a product that I thought of, worked with multiple engineers to develop, sourced internationally, sold $87M in the first quarter at 68% profit margins and I was quite literally asked “what’s next?”
Not a single thank you, no bonus, nothing. I single handedly saved the company from a margin crisis that would’ve tanked our stock costing shareholders and the executives countless millions of dollars. All I got was a “what’s next?”
Waited 4 months for my 5 year contract with them to expire and told them all in the nicest way possible to go f**k themselves. They scrambled to try and keep my and I explained that I wasn’t appreciated in a way I thought was worthy of the money I had made for the organization and that I was going to find a company that would compensate me according to my value. I did. In the process I went after them every chance I got and made a metric f**k ton of money in the process.
Greed will f**k you over. Corporations still haven’t figured it out.
#7
We had 11 workers quit on the spot because they wanted to have a meeting with the COO about their wages and schedules but he shut them down. Office was scrambling to replace them, it was chaos. Later that week they ordered pizza for everyone “to show their appreciation for their workers”. Pizza doesn’t pay my bills.
Luke Branwen 1 month ago
Idk if "COO" is some manager position I don't know about, or if it's "CEO" misspelled, but all I can imagine is a giant pigeon in a suit.
#8
Not me, but years ago, I worked in a call center and can win awards from doing most calls in an hour. This one girl wore long skirts only. She won a ticket to wear jeans but with her culture she doesn't do that. She wore a jeans long skirt and tried turning it and was told it doesn't work on skirts.
Whe tried explaining to them that she couldn't wear jeans and that the award given to her was meaningless since she couldn't use it. They basically told her that was a her problem. So she rebelled by having longer phone conversations.
If a company doesn't have a budget to reward its workers, there are other routes it can take.
"Non-monetary bonuses like additional time off, increased flexibility, public recognition, or exclusive perks can be effective," Spencer said. "But they should reflect the needs and preferences of your employees."
#9
At my old job before this one, I was promoted. They couldn't give me a raise because "the economy, you know how it is", but they sure as hell could saddle me with twice as much work. I was there 3 1/2 years and never received a raise despite exemplary work. So when my coworkers were getting poached by a company we worked with, I threw my hat in the ring and was hired off my initial phone interview. When I handed them my notice, I made sure to say that my decision was based off "the economy, you know how it is".
Anyway, this coming September I'll have been with this job 15 years. Get annual raises, quarterly bonuses, a yearly bonus, and company stock. Know your worth and go somewhere where they value your worth.
#10
The biggest piece of cake...
Worked at a company for 9yrs and through some of its toughest times. I often worked unpaid overtime and went above and beyond. These were some of the highlights the boss pointed out while giving a recognition speech about me. He ended it with "most families save the biggest piece of chicken for the bread-winner, so keeping with that tradition, I'm offering you the biggest and first slice of cake".
After being recognized in such a manner, I waited for about a month for an actual monetary bonus. Upon receiving nothing, I put in my notice citing the speech and lack of actual reward for my efforts.
**Edit:** A lot of you are inquiring. Yes I had a one-on-one shortly after "cake time" with the boss asking about a monetary bonus and was reminded that the cake was my bonus. I followed up 2 weeks later to the same response before being told to drop it. When I gave my resignation he said it was shocked and in disbelief. Shortly after, I was offered 3 additional hours on my next paycheck to stay.
R.A. Haley 1 month ago
I'm sorry, but your competitor offered me a Lifesavers candy book, so I'm going to work for them now.
#11
Work for a super small construction company. 15 people total small.
Won a $1.5m contract singlehandedly. Largest single contract in the company's 35 year history.
Didn't get s**t. Bosses both went on 3 vacations that year to various luxury locations around the globe.
Didn't get s**t.
#12
A poker chip with "APPRECIATION" written on it
Literally a token of appreciation. 🙄.
#13
A $50 Amazon gift certificate. How could I feel bad about what was basically cash? I was part of a four person team that booked a $26 million software contract for my company, I wrote half of the proposal as software tech lead, and I cleaned up all of the text in the rest of the proposal. The other three were one level above me in the hierarchy, and one of them bought a Lexus with his bonus.
Luke Branwen 1 month ago (edited)
Ladies, gentlemen and lovely nonbinary folk, THIS is the holy tenet of capitalism. You can work so hard you make millions, and you only get to keep peanuts while sheer majority of the money goes to those who just own $hit.
#14
A chocolate box with 5 small chocolates. To thank us for the release of a product that doubled the company's revenue.
Howl's sleeping castle 1 month ago
We got homemade chocolates and they were bad. Even the managers threw them away.
#15
A certificate congratulating me on my 20 yr work anniversary.
Literally a piece of paper.
My wife has a better story though. The hospital she works at gave them a 50$ gift card for a chain jewelry store. They then taxed her on it as income and deducted it from her paycheck. She doesn't buy or wear jewelry.
The gift cost HER money.
And the hospital reported record profits that year due to all the layoffs.
#16
Management had f****d up and their “solution” was to mandate 90+ hour weeks from everyone for several months. We were told that management will “make it right”. They announce that the president and CEO is coming to personally thank us and give us a “generous” bonus.
The day comes and sure enough, the guy rolls up in his $300k Mercedes, flaps his gobhole for a bit then has his assistant hand out envelopes with our bonus. The generous bonus? A $25 gift card to wal mart.
Luke Branwen 1 month ago
But aren't you happy that your hard work and sacrifice allowed your boss to get a nice new car? The good feeling of pride and achievement should've been an enough reward on its own! /s
#17
Target, my annual review got me a.. 8 cent raise! Oh and if they increase the minimum wage you don’t keep the ‘bonus’ haha.
nicholas nolan 1 month ago
Don't wory about it! I expect minimum wage to be entirely repealed in a year!
#18
$100 Amazon gift card - it was taxable, so I paid like $45 for it, and it got lost in the mail! They claimed they couldn’t replace it.
#19
I had to evacuate my house because of a wildfire and lived in a hotel for a month while the smoke damage was dealt with.
My boss wanted to send me a gift “because of what you’re going through.” A candle. The gift was a candle.
#20
Fired everyone in the department but me. Told me I was getting 10% bonus immediately and then another bonus on top of that. Got an email, .25 cent raise applied. I was cleaning out my office 30 minutes later and handed in the biggest professional “f**k you” resignation letter I’ve ever written. Was told I would never be paid what I expected, blah blah blah. I now work literally 10 hours a week and make double what I did there. They still call asking how to handle things and I laugh every time. I always tell them maybe ask legal or look at the policy. I’m not working there anymore, quit calling lmao.
#21
A BBQ lunch.
There was food every Friday that was delivered towards the end of the day so that it covered both first and second shift (I was on 2nd). We had been absolutely slammed with a huge project and it fell disproportionately to nights for various reasons.
To thank everyone for all of their hard work the management hired a BBQ company to come in and cater lunch which happened when we were not there.
Due to the lunch they canceled that week's Friday food. So to thank us for all of our hard work they took away our food.
#22
I worked for an evil empire healthcare that grossly underpays and overworks their employees. But it’s one of the few major hospitals in my area. So a lot of people have to work for them even though they don’t like it. One time they pulled me back to say that they realized they were underpaying me compared to my coworkers with the same years of experience, but they didn’t want me to tell anyone because not all of my coworkers were gonna get this “bonus”. It was a nickel. my bonus was five cents. I told everyone because it was such a joke. It would’ve been so much better if it just showed up on my pay and they didn’t tell me I was going to get this big bonus 🤦♀️.
#23
I worked throughout the pandemic, coming into contact with people from all over the globe. I'm not allowed to say specifically what my job was but it was in the public sector
After the pandemic ended, we were each given a sachet of porridge as a bonus, lucky us.
Luke Branwen 1 month ago
They literally said "Here, eat your slop, peasants, and thank us for it."
#24
My old retail job gave us all turkey vouchers for Thanksgiving. When we went to redeem them turned out they were actually $5 off if you bought a turkey worth $25 or more.
Beth Wheeler 1 month ago
Every year at Thanksgiving we get a $25 Butterball gift check that can be used for anything in the grocery store.
#25
They took me out of the role I applied for and was enjoying, put me in another role that required around the clock service to clients and said, there's no pay bump but this will help you take on more work.
I took vacation for a week, came back, and put in my two weeks during training.
Peeka_Mimi 1 month ago
I worked graveyard for a year with the promise of getting second shift as soon as it became available. They hired someone else. I quit on the spot.
#26
Way back in the 90's, the company that I was working for hit $1 million in revenue. They gave us all a gift to celebrate. I got a post-it note dispenser that said "Million Dollar Club". I think I was making $7.65 an hour.
K Barnes 1 month ago
This reminds me of when I worked retail and the store was making record profits. I was making 7$ an hour. We got a 5$ gift card to the store I worked for as a Christmas gift/bonus. The CEO constantly posted pictures of herself wearing enormous diamonds posing with the product in stores on display. Not very motivating that we hauled a*s for her and others to get exorbitantly wealthy while we got peanuts.
#27
A membership to Jelly of the Month Club. It got my family arrested. Don't ask.
#28
Buddy of mine told me if he hits a certain number on his sales, he gets a “jeans pass”. Hes allowed to wear jeans for one day, lmao.
#29
We got a 9” plushie of our company mascot. They’re the same ones we give out at conferences to everyone.
#30
Worked for electrical tape manufacturer. Imperfect/garbage rolls were there by the ton. For Christmas we were allowed to take home some red and green tape (defects) while clocking out.
Poll Question
What do you think about non-financial bonuses given by employers?
They're a nice gesture
It's better than nothing
They often feel inadequate
I'd rather have a financial bonus
What do you think ?
Ellie Ahmed 1 month ago
Not my work, but my lovely mother's. She was a hospital worker during Covid. After the official end of Covid measures, her employer decided to offer a bonus of $2000... as an incentive to any former staff who had quit during the pandemic and were willing to return. The staff who remained with the company and had worked through the entire pandemic were not pleased. Management really took that on board and had a change of heart. A mass email went out the next day announcing they were now extending a bonus to everyone. Any staff member could present to the main office over the next week and receive a free block of chocolate as a token of management's appreciation for their loyalty. I cannot stress enough that this chocolate retails for $4 a block. I also cannot stress enough how many people refused to even dignify the offer by collecting their chocolate, or how often the phrase "they can stick their f*****g chocolate up their f*****g a*s" was uttered by staff over the following week
Howl's sleeping castle 1 month ago
I like these posts. My husband is planning to start his business and I know more about how not to treat the employees.
General Anaesthesia 1 month ago
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
Load More Replies... Little Bit 1 month ago
Not my actual job but I occasionally look after my manager's pet dog when she is away. One time, as a thank you for looking after my dog, she gave me a plastic bag full of all the free tea, coffee and sugar sachets from her hotel room. Wow. Just wow.
Ellie Ahmed 1 month ago
Not my work, but my lovely mother's. She was a hospital worker during Covid. After the official end of Covid measures, her employer decided to offer a bonus of $2000... as an incentive to any former staff who had quit during the pandemic and were willing to return. The staff who remained with the company and had worked through the entire pandemic were not pleased. Management really took that on board and had a change of heart. A mass email went out the next day announcing they were now extending a bonus to everyone. Any staff member could present to the main office over the next week and receive a free block of chocolate as a token of management's appreciation for their loyalty. I cannot stress enough that this chocolate retails for $4 a block. I also cannot stress enough how many people refused to even dignify the offer by collecting their chocolate, or how often the phrase "they can stick their f*****g chocolate up their f*****g a*s" was uttered by staff over the following week
Howl's sleeping castle 1 month ago
I like these posts. My husband is planning to start his business and I know more about how not to treat the employees.
General Anaesthesia 1 month ago
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
Load More Replies... Little Bit 1 month ago
Not my actual job but I occasionally look after my manager's pet dog when she is away. One time, as a thank you for looking after my dog, she gave me a plastic bag full of all the free tea, coffee and sugar sachets from her hotel room. Wow. Just wow.
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