What is Employee Appreciation Day?

Every year on the first Friday in March, employers around the country celebrate Employee Appreciation Day. Bob Nelson and Workman Publishing, his publisher, started the day in 1995 to highlight employees’ hard work and contribution to the success of businesses across all industries and sectors. This day offers a prime opportunity to express your appreciation for your workforce, creating a positive impression of your business and fostering a work culture built on respect, recognition and gratitude for everything your workers do.

Benefits of celebrating Employee Appreciation Day

If you’re wondering why you should celebrate Employee Appreciation Day, consider the benefits offered by even small gestures toward your staff. You might know how much you appreciate your employees, but they don’t know unless you show or tell them. When they feel appreciated, they’re more likely to give you top-notch performance and stick around through the tough times.

Some benefits that come from showing employees appreciation include:

• Better job satisfaction.Employers go to great lengths to keep employees happy when they want to retain their workforce. Employee appreciation offers an easy way to show gratitude and boost morale.
• Improved performance.When employees feel like you appreciate what they do, they’re more likely to do more of it. Appreciation provides an incentive to work harder, which can increase productivity and work quality.
• Increased engagement. Being appreciated increases employee engagement, meaning they’re actively involved and committed to their jobs. Only 33% of employees in the United States are engaged, so working to improve this metric may improve workers’ interest in anddedication to their jobs.
• Lower turnover.Employees want to work for a company that appreciates their efforts. Showing appreciation makes employees feel better about their jobs and means they’re less likely to look for new opportunities, potentially reducing turnover rates and saving your company money.

Employee Appreciation Day ideas

There are plenty of ways to show employee appreciation on Employee Appreciation Day — or any other day of the year. To help you choose how to celebrate, start by setting your budget for the celebration and divide that amount by the number of employees. Here, we’ve listed 50 ways to display your gratitude, ranging from free to premium, depending on your business’s budget.

Free employee appreciation ideas

Employee appreciation ideas don’t have to be costly.Sincere expressions of gratitude and recognition of accomplishments help keep your employees motivated, so try these ideas when you’re operating on a tighter budget.

1. Appreciation letters

Write each staff member an employee appreciation letter to highlight specific accomplishments or qualities you appreciate in them.

2. Social media recognition

Celebrate your employees publicly by making recognition posts on your social media pages. If you have a small staff, highlight each employee individually. Likewise, do a group appreciation post or spread out individual shout-outs over a few weeks if you have a larger staff.

3. Website highlights

If you don’t have staff profiles on your website, add them to unveil on Employee Appreciation Day. Putting them front and center shows staff you value them and helps your customers connect to your company.

4. Bulletin board display

Go the old-fashioned route by creating a bulletin board display for the day. Post photos of staff along with positive messages or lists of their accomplishments over the last year.

5. In-person leadership recognition

Have managers verbally thank and recognize each employee, and continue with regular manager feedback going forward. When managers provide daily feedback, employees are three times more likely to stay engaged than employees who only get yearly feedback.

6. Musical takeover

Crank up the tunes in the office if you normally work in silence and let your staff play DJ. If you normally play music, give them control of the station for the day.

7. Suggestion box

Set up an employee suggestion box on Employee Appreciation Day to show you value employees’ opinions. Review the feedback regularly and implement their suggestions when possible.

8. Casual day

If your employees normally wear business casual attire, make Employee Appreciation Day a casual dress day. Freedom to dress how they like helps them relax, which canimprove engagement and satisfaction levels.

9. Manager work takeover

Have your managers take on some of their employees’ tasks. It lightens team members’ workloads for the day and shows managers are there to help when needed.

10. Peer appreciation

Encourage peer appreciation on Employee Appreciation Day. Buy a card or hang a sheet of paper for each employee, and let staff members write nice things on each other’s sheets. Alternatively, leave slips of paper out so individuals can anonymously write positive things about their coworkers.

11. Tribute video

Produce an appreciation video for all your employees to play on TVs throughout the office, or send an internet link to everyone via email.

12. Flexible workday

Make Employee Appreciation Day a flexible workday where everyone can work remotely.

13. Family open house

Invite workers’ families to the office on Employee Appreciation Day for a simple recognition ceremony.

14. Hidden appreciation notes

Write personalized compliments or acknowledgments on sticky notes for each staff member. Hide them in various places in their workstations so they find the notes throughout the day.

15. CEO for the day

Give employees a little decision-making power by naming them honorary CEO for the day. Let them choose something fun, such as a team celebration.

16. Animal cuddle time

Ask a local animal shelter if they can bring some puppies or kittens to your office. Have a special animal cuddle session where your employees can pet the animals to release stress and have a fun break from work.

17. Leadership welcome

Gather all managers and have them stand at the door to greet team members as they arrive. Thank them, shake their hands, pass out little gifts or otherwise show appreciation.

18. Newsletter recognition

Write shout-outs to your employees in a weekly or monthly newsletter that goes out to staff, stakeholders and clients.

Low-cost employee appreciation ideas

If you have a bigger budget, consider pairing a low-cost employee gift with one of the free ideas for a bigger gesture. Here are some low-cost Employee Appreciation Day ideas to add to your brainstorming sessions.

19.Breakroom treats

Put out a small food spread in thebreakroom. Include treats like doughnuts, bagels or an ice cream sundae bar for someextra fun.

20. Branded gear

Hand out branded gear that shows off your business logo. Choose high-quality clothing, such as super-soft T-shirts or hoodies they can wear on casual days.

21. Employee massages

Have a local massage therapist do short chair massages for your employees in thebreakroom.

22. Extra break time

Extend lunches or rest breaks on appreciation day with little extras, such as desserts, during that time.

23. Employee playtime

Set aside a few hours on Employee Appreciation Day for relaxation and fun. Create friendly competitions between departments, with prizes for the winners.

24. Awards ceremony

Hold a simple awards ceremony to recognize your staff. Present each employee with an award based on their strengths or accomplishments.

25. Passion projects

Give employees a little time to work on a passion project during work hours.

26. Decorate the office

Welcome your employees on Employee Appreciation Day with fun decorations like banners, balloons and streamers.

27. Employee car wash

While employees are working, have the bosses head to the parking lot and wash everyone’s cars.

28. Traveling trophy

Launch a traveling trophy to kick-start ongoing appreciation in the office. Award the traveling trophy to one person on Employee Appreciation Day.Then have the winner pass it around when someone else does something outstanding.

29. Coupons

Give each employee a booklet of coupons for little perks, such as leaving 15 minutes early or having lunch with the boss.

30. Yearbook or recognition book

Create a company yearbook that includes all team members. Add pictures from special events and include awards for various accomplishments.

31. Employee discounts

Partner with local companies to get special discounts for your employees.

Higher-cost employee appreciation ideas

Spending a little more money lets you give your employees gifts to show appreciation. If your budget allows it, try these more expensive Employee Appreciation Day ideas.

32. Team meal

Choose a fancy restaurant and treat your team to lunch there on Employee Appreciation Day. Alternatively, bring in food trucks and pick up the tab so your team can enjoy a meal on the house.

33. Gift cards

Present each employee with a gift card along with a thank-you card so they can treat themselves.

34. Employee retreat

Plan a retreat for your staff. It can be a one-day event or an overnight event, depending on your budget.

35. Event tickets

Give each staff member a ticket or pair of tickets to an event or attraction in the area.

36. Continuing education opportunity

Let each person choose a conference, class or continuing education opportunity as a thank-you gift.

37. Day off

Show your appreciation by giving employees an extra paid day off. This option doesn’t cost you anything up-front, but it does cost you in wages when you pay for the extra day.

38. Interest-based gift

Pick a gift for each employee based on their personal interests. This option shows you appreciate them beyond just the work they do.

39. Breakroom makeover

Renovate the breakroom to make it more appealing. This upgrade makes employees’ work environment more enjoyable long term.

40. Charity donation

Let each staff member choose a charitable organization they support and make a donation in their name.

41. Paid volunteer time

Help your employees make a difference by giving them paid time to volunteer for a cause of their choice.

42. Update equipment

Invest in your staff and your company’s future by upgrading equipment. Update outdated equipment or buy equipment you don’t yet have to make their jobs easier.

43. Field trip

Skip work for the afternoon, and take everyone somewhere fun for a field trip. Examples include miniature golf, the beach or bowling.

44. Gift subscription

Sign each employee up for a subscription box for something they enjoy. Choose anywhere from a month to a year of the subscription box to better control your budget.

45. Professionalphotoshoot

Bring in a professional photographer to takeheadshots or fun action shots for the company website and employee business cards.

46. Spot bonus

Give each person a monetary bonus. This option lets you easily control the budget because you can give a bonus of any amount.

47. Rewards platform

Introduce the use of a rewards platform on Employee Appreciation Day. Use these platforms to regularly reward workers for accomplishments going forward.

48. Special speaker

Invite a speaker to present to your team. Choose someone who is inspirational or a leader in your industry.

49. Frequent requests

If your employees regularly request something, such as free parking, a secure bike rack or an in-house gym, grant that request. This shows that you listen to them and want to improve the environment.

50. Employee choice incentive

Give each team member a small stipend to use toward something specific, such as a gym membership, certification training or child care.

Small gestures of appreciation have big benefits in terms of employee engagement. Use this list of Employee Appreciation Day ideas as a jumping-off point to create your own traditions that keep workers happy with their jobs.