The making of a good work environment...

Top management has excess funds and want to use those funds for the employess. That is a very good idea but the implementation of it is all wrong. There are too many options. Why burden the entire organization with 10 options. Wouldnt it have been a better option to eliminate a few and then have everyone vote on 5 of them?

Some of the options should come out of the budget just because it is the right thing to do and will create better, happier, satisfied or loyal employees. Employees should be recognized for their longevity and seniority. It does not have to be an elaborate or expensive gift. Acknowledgement and feeling important is what fires motivation. That is not a new concept. The same is true for setting up a fund for employees who may have encountered a loss or tragedy.

I think that with an extra $7000, management should have first spent it on the employees just to create that sense of caring and appreciation for the staff. That would have given big kudos to the management, particularly in a time where management and staff seem to be on opposite ends of the spectrum. Why not look like the hero first? It is important to re-establish credibility and gain some of that respect that may have been lost during the union negotiations, making the employees do work 0utside of their job descriptions, providing limited training and resources, etc. Why not buy the refrigerator that everyone wants? ...or provide water coolers in the office? There will still be a lot of money left over to spend on employee suggestions and management can still look like a hero.

If motivational incentives do not come from above, why not let them come from below? Doesn't the staff and bottom level employees know what makes them happy and what could make them happy?

Every other Friday (payday week), the staff provide a themed morning feast. This comes from the pockets of the employees not management. Everyone looks forward to it and everyone seems to try to out-do each other by creating elaborate feasts. This type of motivational strategy fosters comraderie among divisions of staff, promotes creativity and, most important, creates a happy employee. Happy employees make good employees.

Food is a great tool for bringing people together. So, why not spend the money on weekly/monthly meals for the employees? By doing it this way, everyone reaps the reward. This is the most equitable solution and it also brings people together. And you know what happens when you bring workers together, right? They talk about what is going on, what they like and dislike.

This may the BEST way for management to see or hear the problems of the workforce.