To think hamper is better gift than voucher for staff

[Christmasmorale]

Ok given everything going on this year I want to boost staff morale with a nice Christmas gift. Our budget isn’t large enough to give a meaningful bonus. We have about £200 spend for each staff member.

I like the idea of an F&M hamper - with staff either choosing the Wine or Christmas food hamper. My business partner thinks it’s a waste of money and that staff would appreciate a £200 department store or Amazon voucher instead to spend as they please.

Personally, I used to get an F&M hamper every Christmas from an old work place and I still have the hamper boxes in use to this day as blanket storage etc. Even though I would also get a £1000 Christmas bonus from that workplace it’s the hamper that I remember fondly and associate positively with the organisation.

So:

YANBU: hampers are a more personal touch
YABU: just give them the money, no one wants F&M fruit cakes

This sounds a bit crass, but it depends on the affluence if the recipient. If £200 to spend in M&S is going to be a big treat/make a difference to Christmas, then you’d far rather have a voucher than a hamper. If you wouldn’t think twice about spending £200 in M&S, then a voucher is a bit meh and you’d far rather have a smart hamper, which is something people tend not to buy for themselves.

Can you not just give them the cash?

Many people are hard up. Cash is far better than a gift or a voucher for something that might be useless to them.

If you are letting them choose between a food and wine hamper, then surely just add an extra couple of options, for Amazon or M&S vouchers. Problem solved.

Personally, I'd like a hamper, but not F&M - much better value out there.

I’d prefer voucher too. My company doesn’t do vouchers at Christmas but we do get a token gift.
One year was metal water bottle and other was a Bluetooth speaker, both of which I use.

Other companies I’ve been at have done a quick survey of which company you’d prefer vouchers from and gone with majority.

Any other year, I'd have been completely with you on the hamper as I think they're a really impressive gift, however this year, as someone upthead has already said, they maybe experiencing financial problems due to lost household income, so a £200 Amazon or love to shop voucher could mean some lovely Christmas presents for their children that they've been losing sleep over, or means they'll be able to buy a lovely Christmas dinner! Love to shop or all for one vouchers cover absolutely loads of shops - including food shops so they're always good! You could put a lovely bottle of wine with it too maybe? Or some M&S chocolates? Would you consider giving it a couple of week before Christmas too so it could contribute to Christmas of they need it to?

It's really lovely that you're being so generous with gifts for your staff too

Definitely the voucher. I've just had a look at the F&M hamper for £200 and there are maybe 3 things in there I would use. The rest would be given away.

Just check on the tax implications if you give a voucher. I think they have to be declared on P11ds.

Definitely a voucher - I'd always say that anyway but this year especially, when peoples budgets are tighter, a voucher is a much better option.

In my household it's just DD and I for Christmas (I co parent with her dad but it's my turn to have DD for Christmas) and this year it will just be the two of us for the first time ever, as we usually go to my parents where my mum does a huge family Christmas for nearly 30 of us.

A voucher would allow me to buy extra treats or just some fancier items to make it a fun Christmas day, just the two of us. A hamper would be wasted as I often dont like the things they contain or, with it just being the 2 of us, would end up wasted as we wouldn't be able to eat it all.

We get a voucher from a shop of our choice every Xmas I would be so disappointed if the boss decided to give a hamper instead.

I think the voucher is a better option as they can use it to but other people presents or on themselves for a treat.

I’d prefer the hamper but I think most people would prefer the cash/vouchers to spend on what they want/need. I think it maybe depends on your income and how meaningful and extra £200 would be.

My work gives a bloody hamper 🙄
Voucher every time... better still, just cash.

Also if you’re thinking vouchers The Post Office All for One vouchers are really good and you can spend them in loads of shops, so you aren’t limited to just M&S.

www.one4all.com/?gclid=Cj0KCQiA-rj9BRCAARIsANB_4ABHYlgZb1FbFFJwCw2BihqGxrXm3CuaYNU821-LXRC8FGImT-glSQEaAo0JEALw_wcB

Voucher all the way, I'm pregnant with gestational diabetes, both those hampers would be useless to me!

I received a hamper from my work last week, sent to my house and it was a very nice surprise. I think a hamper is nicer than vouchers, particularly if it’s from F&M.

How about an Etsy gift voucher?

Lots of lovely stuff, supporting small businesses. Those that can't find anything they like have their Christmas shopping budget reduced. Plus they offset carbon on deliveries.

My policy this year is to give people gifts that support small and/or struggling retailers.

John Lewis/Waitrose or M&S voucher over an old fashioned F&M hamper any day. How about a voucher with either a bottle of champagne or some luxury Hotel Chocolates, love the white boxes. I wouldn't want an Amazon voucher.

I’d go for a modest hamper, say £25-50, from M&S/Waitrose as a foodie treat, & add in the more substantial sum as a voucher for Amazon/M&S/John Lewis to be spent as preferred.

@Mia1415 might be right about that so check it out. If it's cash it's taxable as we used to give staff cash but gross it up.

What I would do is to ask each employee what they would like to have. I could happily spend £200 in M&S, especially in the sale.

I disagree with the affluence comments. I’m in the lucky position that although I’d always be happy with an extra £200, I don’t need it at all.

If I got an F&M hamper, I’d just roll my eyes - and be really disappointed. It’s just food. If I’m into nice treat food (or wine) then I’m sure £200 cash would allow me to make better choices. Just because biscuits are “Duchy Originals” (just a guess at what might be in the hamper!) doesn’t actually make them worth the money. So some items I just wouldn’t like (fruit cake: yuck) and others I would think were just over priced. So I’d look at them with disdain, rather than feelings of luxury. I certainly don’t want to keep the hamper, not my style at all and I’d be annoyed by the waste.

I wouldn’t feel my employer had made any effort. It’s just as thought-free as a voucher.

Now, if my company created a hamper from locally produced products and explicitly said they were wanting to support small business in difficult times, I’d be happier with the happier. F&M is miles away from my personal values, and I’d see it as showy trash! No matter if the individual items tasted nice.

I would rather have £100 voucher than a £200 hamper.
I would mostly just look at the hamper and think what a waste of money it was.

Cash, voucher as second choice. No one wants a hamper they are such a waste, but clearly you are determined to get one in somehow.

YABU, cash, just cash (which in the form of a voucher is only just a little bit worse). Wasting money on stuff which is valued so much less by the receiver than giver is madness.

If you are really set on hampers then aldi do some good ones including vegan none drinkers chocolate etc fir a really good price.
I know it dosent scream luxury treats but one of those and a voucher may please everyone

I've voted YABU but I think there is a middle ground. A small hamper shows thought and the vouchers are probably appreciated more. A F+M hamper is not something I'd every buy so it would be a lovely treat.

It's lovely that you are putting the thought in, not all employers value their employees