When you go to work, you assume that you’re there to earn income—so it can be particularly galling when your workplace pressures you towith your hard-earned cash. Yet being expected to open your wallet is surprisingly common in the workplace. From collections taken up for office baby showers to retirements to farewell gifts, workplace charity drives, and beyond, there’s seemingly a never-ending rotation of occasions designed to zap your paycheck.
The absolute worst example of these sorts of requests is when you’re asked to chip in money to fund a gift for someone who earns far more than you do. Unbelievably, workers inEach year we have done a holiday gift for to recognize his leadership during the year. Given the very busy holiday season, I’d like to start the ball rolling on the collection early this year in order to present him with his gift by December 18th at our annual retreat day.
One of my co-workers at my old job took it upon herself to get someone a really expensive wedding gift “from the team” without consulting the team, then sent us invoices for $75 each. I don’t know what everyone else did, but me and at least one other co-worker gave her $20 and called it a day. I suspect she ended up paying $200 to $300 out of pocket herself.
Recently, two of my colleagues both gave monthlong notices. After the news was announced, our boss threw a small party that we all attended. Our organization ordered food and a cake, and they were presented with gifts.