It’s been over 100 years since President Grover Cleveland established Labor Day as a federal holiday. Officially recognized in 1894, Labor Day was born out of the rise of workers’ rights during the peak of the Industrial Revolution. Today, we reap its benefits, including minimum wage and overtime laws. We commemorate Labor Day because it forever changed the relationship between employer and employee. You can make every day Labor Day with these three creative ways to celebrate your relationship with your employees.
Offer free meals
There are numerous perks you can use to incentivize and reward your employee. For many companies, free meals are a great way to reward your employees for their hard work. According to the IRS, employee-provided meals do not count against employee income if 1) they are furnished on your business premises and 2) they are furnished for your convenience. In addition to tax benefits, there is a positive ROI to employee meals.
Check out our post for more information on how free meals can save your company money.
Give spot bonuses
It’s important to assign value to an employee’s exceptional work. That’s why we recommend giving spot bonuses to employees. A spot bonus is a great way to immediately recognize your employee and it doesn’t have to break the bank. We built the “spot net bonuses” feature so employers can easily reward employees without worrying about tax implications.
Check out our post for more information on how you can offer your employees spot bonuses.
Recognize achievements with personal notes
Everyone loves getting a bonus, but it turns out money isn’t the primary motivating factor for employee morale. According to Dr. Larina Kase, a business psychologist and author of The Confident Leader: “Money can make employees unhappy if they’re not sufficiently compensated, but it has not been shown to lead to motivation, satisfaction or performance.” That’s why we introduced personal notes as part of the compensation experience. Employers can thank their employees directly through the Gusto application. We think personal notes are a simple but important way to strengthen the relationship between employer and employee.
Thanks to the efforts of many before us, we celebrate Labor Day and the social and economic achievements of American workers. Let’s honor their memory and continue evolving on how we celebrate employees every day.
