Are there any companies left who give turkeys or food gift certificates to workers at Thanksgiving?

[Unbowed]

I'm just curious because it used to be that employers would give turkeys at Thanksgiving, or a fruit basket or gift certificate to a grocery store.

With all this talk about CEO bonuses and Thanksgiving nearly here, it's made me think back to a time (not so long ago) when companies actually cared about their workers or at least made an effort to treat them like human beings. There were also better benefits, things like sick days and earned time which are rapidly disappearing from the puny benefit "packages" todays workers are forced to accept. I'm not even going to go into the mythical Christmas / Holiday bonus. That's just an old legend.

Benefits are taken away on a whim and American workers have no recourse. Employment at will offers no protection whatsoever for workers. You don't like it, then quit. We don't like you, you're gone. You get hired with a weeks vacation after a year and there is nothing whatsoever for non-union workers can do if the employer decides to do a little belt-tightening by extending the waiting period to 2 years or even eliminate it entirely. Notice how the belts always seem to tighten on the lowest paid employees? The employer giveth and the employer taketh away. Any time he feels like it.

The treatment of workers is inversely proportional to the unemployment rate: the higher the unemployment rate, the more tyrannical employers become. And workers just suck it in because there is no recourse.

My company did not give turkeys this year. Instead they gave us a day off without pay. We get the day after turkey day off. We got 2 weeks notice that we were going to have the day off, whether we want it or not. No pay of course and most people already used most of their vacation days earlier in the year. The same meeting of minds that determined this also let us know that there will be no Christmas party this year. This is called being proactive, you know, for the upcoming hard times. We are in the heating business and we have never been busier.

I suppose, in a manner of speaking, we got the bird after all.

[RB TexLa]

1. I had two grocery stores send me coupons for free turkeys, they are in the freezer right now.

[Midlodemocrat]

14. Mine, too. The one we're eating is defrosting and I'm giving the free ones

to the shelter.

Turkey was cheap this year, under $20 for a 22 pound Butterball, so I figured I'd donate the freebies.

Least I can do in this economic climate.

[DJ13]

2. My wife's oh so generous employer does

They started handing out $20 gift cards to a grocery store 5 years ago, and they dropped it down to $15 last year.

This year who knows.

[Unbowed]

3. They will probably use the economy as a reason to eliminate it this year.

:eyes:

[Nickster]

12. We used to get a choice of a few different food packages, ham, turkey, whatever. Then they changed

it to a $25 gift card, but forgot that they'd have to tax us, so I gave mine back, that was a few years ago. This year, no gift cards, no xmas party, nada. Heck, even a nice xmas card would be something.

[Edweird]

4. I get them. I have a new job, so I don't know what's going on this year....

but I believe I will.

[Journeyman]

5. I do . . .

a couple of my vendors do, as well. One asks their employees to work three ten hour days at regular pay, then gives them Friday off with pay for the missing two hours to make a full forty hour week. Can't assure this will continue, of course, but some people still recognize the value of people.

[Unbowed]

7. That's encouraging.

It's good to know some employers are still trying to think of their employees.

[Breeze54]

6. Yes my son's old job gave gift certificates to restaurants for dinner and a turkey and candy

I don't know what his new place of employment will do, if anything.
My other 2 sons were laid off, so they won't be getting a damned
thing from their old company except an unemployment check. :(

[elifino]

8. My company gives for both Christmas and the 4 of July

All full time employees get holiday pay and either a ham or the choice of a gift from a catalog. Usually we get more than one day off. Salaried and hourly employees are treated equally. Hourly employees have a defined benefit retirement plan plus a chance to contribute to a 401K, each person has a choice of a fixed interest, low risk, mod risk, and high risk in any combination. Salaried employees have only the 401K. On the 4 of July all employee and family get a company paid day at 6 Flags.
I am in my 50th year with this company and still love working here.

elifino

[trayfoot]

9. Yes, Target!

[murielm99]

10. My husband's company gives a free turkey.

This year, we are going to my daughter's house for Thanksgiving, so we will have the turkey at Christmas.

[juno jones]

11. For many years I have gotten bonuses

of food items (turkey, ham, wine etc) at thanksgiving and x-mas. I tend to work in small mom and pop restaurants and I've found them to be more generous than larger buisnesses.

I don't know if I'll recieve anything from my present bakery job. I've only been there a couple of weeks and the generous policy with bread keeps us in artisan loaves, so I really can't complain.

[trof]

13. I worked at a grocery store when I was a kid.

It was a small, local chain.
Five stores.
The owner was this really sweet old Italian guy, and his main office was in my store.
I was an after school/Saturdays bag boy, shelf stocker, etc.

Each Thanksgiving and Christmas every employee got to pick out a turkey or a ham.
I was so proud when I brought that first turkey home to mom.
Ah, the good ol' days.

[Tracer]

15. Yes.

My daughter's company give their employees a choice of a huge turkey or an equally large ham.

(This company also gives out yearly bonuses of thousands of $$$s).

We take the ham (or turkey) to our local church's food bank.

[uncle ray]

16. my company's christmas bonus

used to be a weeks pay for every employee.two years ago they switched it to a weeks worth of pay contributed to your 401k account! then some unspecified amount may be contributed to your 401k. i feel fortunate because i don't have kids to buy gifts for, i can't imagine the insult to those with families, as if the kids can wait until their parents retire to get their christmas gifts!