A new survey suggests Canadian employers may need to rethink their approach to employee recognition during the holiday season, with 81 per cent of full-time workers saying they would prefer a cash bonus over attending a company holiday party.
The survey, conducted by employment platform Employment Hero, found that just 13 per cent of respondents would choose the office celebration over additional money. The findings also point to employee expectations around holiday scheduling, compensation for working statutory holidays and boundaries around workplace communications during time off.
For businesses preparing their holiday budgets and staffing plans, the results highlight the importance of understanding what employees value when it comes to recognition and workplace flexibility.
Cash bonuses outweigh holiday celebrations
The preference for financial rewards was consistent across age groups, suggesting it is not limited to a particular generation of workers. Among Canadians aged 18 to 34, 84 per cent said they would choose a cash bonus, compared with 80 per cent of those aged 35 to 54 and 76 per cent of workers aged 55 and older.
Employers should distinguish between social activities intended to bring employees together and recognition that reflects their contributions throughout the year.
"Holiday parties are a great way to bring teams together, but employers shouldn't confuse a celebration with recognition," said Chris Pinkerton, Managing Director, Employment Hero Canada. "A party might build connections, but it doesn't necessarily make someone feel valued for their work throughout the year. For small businesses working with limited budgets, the important thing is to be intentional. Ask your people what matters to them before spending money on something they might not actually want."
The survey also examined what would persuade employees to give up a scheduled holiday day off, with financial compensation emerging as the leading consideration.
Nearly half of respondents, or 47 per cent, said double pay would be the biggest incentive to work on a scheduled holiday. Another 39 per cent preferred some form of additional time or flexibility, including extra paid time off, the ability to work remotely, choosing their own hours or taking another personally important day off.
However, 12 per cent said they would not be willing to give up their holiday time, regardless of what employers offered.
The findings suggest that compensation is not the only consideration for businesses scheduling employees during the holiday period, with flexibility and additional time off also ranking prominently among workers' preferences.
Employees draw boundaries around holiday communications
The survey also examined how willing Canadians are to respond to workplace communications during Christmas Day, New Year's Day and other statutory holidays.
Nearly seven in 10 respondents, or 69 per cent, said they would be unlikely to respond to their manager about a routine, non-urgent matter during those days. The results indicate that employees generally expect non-essential workplace communications to wait until regular business operations resume.
However, the response changes when a genuine emergency arises. The same proportion, 69 per cent, said they would be likely to respond to their manager if the matter was genuinely urgent.
For businesses that maintain operations during the holiday season, the distinction has implications for workforce scheduling, employee availability and contingency planning.
Pinkerton said employers should establish procedures before the holiday period to ensure critical business needs can be addressed without unnecessarily interrupting employees' time off.
"For businesses operating over the holidays, reaching employees when something goes wrong can be essential," Pinkerton added. "But those expectations shouldn't be set on Christmas morning. Assigning on-call staff, agreeing on what constitutes an emergency and establishing clear escalation processes in advance helps businesses stay operational while ensuring employees can properly switch off when they're not needed."
The survey findings point to three areas employers may need to consider when planning for the holiday season: how they recognize employees, what compensation or flexibility they offer for holiday work, and how they manage expectations around employee availability.
Employment Hero's results suggest that while workplace celebrations remain an option for bringing teams together, employees place considerable value on direct financial recognition and having their personal time respected.