Co-workers Can Give the Strangest Gifts

The majority (81%) of workers who plan to buy gifts expect to spend $25 or less for each holiday gift they buy for the office, according to a CareerBuilder survey. Thirty-eight percent plan to spend $10 or less and 10% plan to spend less than $5.   

When asked to share the most memorable gifts received from co-workers, workers reported: 

• CD of the co-worker’s recorded songs;
• Dolphin oven mitt;
• 4 rolls of toilet paper;
• A harpoon;
• Can of wasp spray;
• Jar of sand;
• Homemade pickles;
• Conch shell;
• Lava lamp filled with fake fish;
• Expired body lotion; and
• Book about kittens. 

The survey suggest the scrooge economy appears to be loosening its grip, as companies plan to offer more perks (bonuses, parties, gifts) than last year. Forty-six percent of employers expect to give their employees holiday bonuses this year, up from 40% last year and 33% in 2010. Nearly one in five (19%) plan to provide a larger bonus than last year.   

Six in 10 employers are throwing a holiday party for their employees this year, up from 58% last year and 53% in 2010. Forty percent of workers say they plan to attend. Thirty-six percent of employers plan to give holiday gifts, up from 30% in 2011 and 2010.