Companies remain tight amid recovery
The ongoing recession has nearly put an end to holiday bonuses, with only one in four workers responding to an online poll actually expecting to receive one this year.
Who can forget Clark Griswold expecting his Christmas bonus to help pay for a new pool? Only to be disappointed in the end.
Houston business expert Garrison Wynn says the economy may be showing signs of an improvement, but not enough to lift the "bah, humbug" spirit among most companies.
"The one thing you can do is not expect a bonus these days," Wynn tells KTRH News. "And if you do get one, they vary so much - $100 or $5,000. It used to be years ago bonuses were based on salary, and now we find they're based on nothing."
"The expectation of a bonus is likely to cause you to be disgruntled at work," he says. "You used to think okay we had a certain amount of profitability, we should get a bonus, and then you get a coupon for Starbucks."
Holiday parties also have become a thing of the past, with most companies now holding in-house get-togethers for employees only.
About 83% of businesses polled by Challenger Gray & Christmas Inc. plan to have a holiday party. However, that’s up from 68% a year ago.
In 2007, before the recession hit, this same survey showed that 90% of offices hosted some sort of year-end bash.
Wynn says companies also don't want the liability that comes with serving large amounts of alcohol as well.
