Forget the Christmas Party – Just Give us £50, say UK Workers
Three out of four employees don’t want a workplace Christmas party this year. And nearly nine out of 10 (88%) would rather be given £50, according to new research by YouGov.
Luckily for employers, the bluntly named “Trivial Benefit” allowance from HMRC allows you to gift up to £50 to each employee tax-free, saving you £33.68 – or £48.10 if they pay tax at the higher rate.
And if you do gift your employees £50 each, how will they spend it? According to the survey:
- 23% would save the money
- 17% would use it to top up their Christmas funds
- 11% would take their partners for a romantic night out
- 7% would keep it secret and spend it all on themselves...
- and just 5% would buy a present for their children.
The survey also found that only 24% of employees want a Christmas party this year, and 51% wouldn’t even attend a postponed “Christmas” party post-COVID.
Enthusiasm for parties this year varies across sectors, with lawyers cementing their reputation as the drunkest profession: 34% of workers in the legal sector would be up for a party. They’d also be six times more likely to spend a putative £50 gift on themselves than on their partners (6% versus 1%).
Employees in media, sales and marketing are also quite keen to party this Christmas, with 30% voting yes to a Christmas party, and 52% saying they’d show up if invited – a chunk above the national average of 42%. And a hefty 19% would still choose a party even over a £50 gift – almost double the 11% average nationwide.
In the current financial (not to mention epidemiological) climate, it’s not surprising that most workers would rather stay home with a crisp 50. With the tax break available on £50 gifts, this could be an easy way to spread some festive joy, thank everyone for their hard work,