Celebrating Thanksgiving in the Workplace- What Your Company Should Provide
Having a Thanksgiving themed potluck lunch is about adopting an attitude of gratitude – it’s not supposed to be a burden. What is your company contributing to Thanksgiving this year? What are you expecting your employees to bring?
What Should My Company Provide?
At minimum, the company hosting the event should provide main dish, such as the honorary Thanksgiving staple… the turkey. You may want to provide ham or another option for vegetarian employees. Aside from the main dish, it’s also a good idea to provide the decorations, beverages, and arrange Thanksgiving-themed games or activities like Thanksgiving Trivia or Bingo.
What Should Employees Contribute?
Encourage employee participation, but remind that taking part is voluntary. Employees can contribute the side dishes and/or desserts- both which are relatively inexpensive and allows your employees to express their creativity or showcase their favorite meal.
What Are Work-Friendly Games to Play in the Office for Thanksgiving?
Coming up with unique games that your office will enjoy playing isn't easy. Here are a few games that your team may enjoy:
Thanksgiving-Themed Trivia
Split up into teams and answer some of the most popular (and unpopular) Thanksgiving, Fall, or November related questions
Thanksgiving Bingo
Play a classic game of bingo
Thanksgiving Scavenger Hunt
Send your office outside (or around the office) to find the hidden pumpkins. The person with the most pumpkins wins! I'd suggest using mini pumpkins and providing bags to collect them in. Give it a time limit of 10 minutes.
Left Right Poem Game
This game is easy to play during lunch while everyone is seated at the table. A Thanksgiving-themed poem game keeps your employees guessing and intrigued as to what's going to happen next!
Keeping Employees Engaged and Productive During the Holidays
Start giving out awards. During the weeks between Thanksgiving and right after the New Year, begin a tradition of handing out weekly employee recognition awards. This will encourage employees to continue to work hard and will motivate them when motivation is hard to come by during Q4. 80% of employees say that being recognized motivates them in their job. So remember to thank your employees for a job well done -- and not just this holiday season but every day, year-round.
Put the “Thanks” in Thanksgiving
Create a Staff Shoutout or Staff Thank You board to show your employees appreciation, and give them the chance to do the same for their coworkers. Each person should write down a special thank you to someone else- from another department- that they'd like to recognize.
Boost Employee Morale
A holiday celebration builds positive morale which results in increased employee motivation. We surveyed our employees asking what they really wanted from their employers at Thanksgiving. More than half said they’d enjoy not being required to work the day before and after the holiday. Other benefits included cash bonuses or a pre-holiday meal at work.
We'd love to know what your company does for employees during Thanksgiving holiday? Tweet at @tpistaffing using the hashtag #GiveThanks
