10 ways to celebrate Employee Appreciation Day

What is Employee Appreciation Day?

Employee Appreciation Day takes place on Friday, 6th March. Dating back to 1995, it was set up to give employers the chance to thank employees for their hard work and effort throughout the business year.

How can we celebrate Employee Appreciation Day?

There are plenty of ways you can give kudos to your colleagues this Employee Appreciation Day.

Gestures can be as small or grand as you like, but the important thing is to make your staff feel valued, appreciated and recognised.

Here are 10 easy ways you can show your staff some love this Employee Appreciation Day:

1. - Treats - who doesn’t love free food?! Pick up a latte for everyone on your way in, order pizza to the office for lunch or stock up on doughnuts for an afternoon treat - food and drink are guaranteed to create a feelgood factor in the office
2. - Time off - an early finish, or even an unexpected afternoon off with full pay will definitely put a spring in your staff’s step, ready to come back to work re-energised the next working day
3. - Write a note - a handwritten note or card detailing why you’re grateful for your staff and the work they do will be cherished and well-received by your team
4. - Treatments - enquire about organising for someone to come into the office space and provide beauty or wellness treatments to your staff, like massages or manicures.
5. - Time out - taking time out from the office to go out as a team is a great way to team build and bond. Whether it’s a traditional team-building exercise (anyone for raft building?) or just a meal, drink or cinema outing, it’s bound to be appreciated and enjoyed by all
6. - Bonus - if budgets allow, adding a bonus to your employees’ next wage will be a welcome surprise
7. - Lottery ticket - a small investment for each member of your team which could pay serious dividends (the only risk is if they decide to quit if they hit the jackpot!)
8. - Car wash - call a local valeting company and arrange for them to pay your office a visit to wash your employees’ cars. Getting into a freshly valeted car for the drive home will be a surefire way to make your staff feel great
9. - Pet day - why not invite your staff to bring their four-legged friends into work for a “bring your pet to work” day?
10. - Dress down day - a simple yet effective way to boost staff morale

Why should we mark Employee Appreciation Day?

It’s a no-brainer, but it’s sometimes worth remembering a little praise can go a long way towards making your staff feel good.

In our busy, modern workplaces, it’s easy to forget to say thank you or well done to staff who have performed well or gone above and beyond expectations.

And a little appreciation can go further than simply giving staff a warm glow on the day. 

In fact, showing appreciation to your employees can increase retention rates and enhance productivity. After all, happy staff work hard and stay with a company where they feel valued and respected.