How Do You Celebrate Long Service? Seeking Ideas for Meaningful Employee Awards

Dear HR Friends,

We are planning to give awards to our employees who have long service with the company. Could you please provide some ideas on what should be included in the long service awards? This could be in terms of gifts to be given or mementos, etc.

I am eagerly awaiting your reply.

Regards,
Rajeev

Awards can be given in the form of mementos with a cash reward, mementos with a gift voucher, or lunch/dinner with the family at a three or four-star restaurant.

Silver plates carved with the completion of the year with the company logo can be an option. During this recession period, bonus/cash awards can also be an option. Additionally, 1-2 days of outstation vacation provided by the company, etc.

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Hi,

That will depend on your budget, basically. You can always give them dinner vouchers, gifts, etc. But even you can go for digital cameras, iPods, or maybe a vacation sponsored by the company to any one lucky, oldest, and loyal candidate. So, you can choose as per your budget.

Take care, Vineet

Dear Rajeev,

First, you decided that the long service standards mean 5 years, 10 years, 15 years, 20 years, 25 years, 30 years, 35 years, 40 years, etc. Then select the awards according to their time spent in this company. The weight of the award should be based on long service. Please keep in mind that award handover during the celebration should be equivalent for all, and other gifts like a cheque or cash could be based on the length of service in the company.

First, distribute certificates to individuals for their contributions/achievements to the company. Provide some trophies or packed gifts, vouchers, invitations for dinner at a hotel with their family members, tour vouchers, educational expenses for one child covered by the company, employment opportunities for one relative in this company, etc.

Best Regards,

Sajid Ansari - Delhi

Hi,

I think it should be a bonus kind of... like giving the bonus equal to one month's salary of that person.

Regards,
Kavita Sharma

Dear Rajeev,

You can define a service award based on services rendered in the organization. For example, 3, 6, 10, 15 years, etc., reflecting successful completion of service (without any break or notice period).

A service award can consist of a cash component, memento, and certificate. Let the cash component vary based on the years of service rendered. For example:
- 3 years - one month gross pay excluding retirement benefits
- 6 years - two months gross pay excluding retirement benefits, etc.

Do not forget to budget for all this and include a clause/note in the policy stating that if an employee is found to be involved in any major misconduct, forgery, crime, etc., at the time of the award due, such an employee becomes disqualified to receive the award.

All of these details will vary from organization to organization and depend on the budget.

Regards,
Laks.

Dear Rajeev,

As mentioned by Vineet, it depends on your budget. Ours is a small-sized company, and we also had this kind of ceremony last month. We awarded them with a certificate, gave them a nice watch with the company's logo on it as a memento, and also invited them for lunch at a good hotel. We did so as our budget was limited.

Regards,
Amita

Hi,

In our company, employees who complete 20 years with us are provided with a Long Service Award. This award includes a certificate recognizing their long service with a wristwatch bearing the company logo, costing Rs. 6,000.

Regards,
Hema

Hi friends,

It's actually "Memento" not "momento". 😛

Yes, if it's a cash reward, then maybe you can include it in the policy too. People read and aspire to stick to the company, so mention it in the policy - funny assumption, but blow your trumpet wherever possible! 😛

Then it is the number of years versus a certain percentile of your salary. Assuming that after 3 years, someone at 3 lakh per annum gets 30,000 INR and with 5 years at 5 lakh gets 50,000 INR. In both cases, it is 10% of the salary. Or it can be 5% at 3 years completion, 10% at 5 years completion, etc.

Or you can fix an amount irrespective of salary, to which one is entitled to receive after completing a certain number of years.

Do a small get-together where you invite families too and give away the rewards.

Depending on your budget, you can make it pompous or simple!

- On 1st-year completion, one may receive a congratulatory message. 😛

- 2nd-year completion gets a special lunch with the immediate boss/head of the organization. 😲

- 3rd-year completion... and so on!

Thanks,

Geeta

Geeta, that was a good one.

Rajeev, you also have a club-like activity where employees with long service can become members and receive continuous benefits such as lunch coupons, family outings, etc., or any activity conducted to show them that they are very important personnel in the organization. This will not only improve networking but also motivate them to continue longer.

The only disadvantage of a gift that I see is that between one long service award and the other, there could be a lot of time gap which might not serve as a good perk. Efforts should also be made for brand building the club, and employees should feel proud of being part of it. You may also give a name to all those who are part of this club and give some small mementos. This has been very effective in many organizations.

Hi dear,

You can give the awards to those who have completed their 500 days, 1000 days, or 2500 days. The employee who has completed 2500 days may be entitled to a gold-plated pendant, while the rest can receive cash or gift vouchers.

Vedangi