Friday "Office" poll: When is the last time you went to a company picnic?

From the Community…

• 
  Posted by Christine Fri May 15, 2009 8:58am PDT

  the last time I had some form of a office pinic was in 2001 where a former boss would buy tickets for his employee and there family, he also would buy food and drink and go to a local baseball team the Charleston Riverdogs last home game. It was great and it was also a wonderful moral push. I wish that more companies would do more for there employees other then working and a paycheck. It is nice to get together for things other then work related events.

  Report Abuse
• 
  Posted by Nancy D Fri May 15, 2009 9:05am PDT

  HATE office picnics. Bad food, and co-workers that I'm forced to spend time with in a "fun" environment. Just give me the day off instead!

  Report Abuse
• 
  Posted by Shannon Fri May 15, 2009 9:51am PDT

  I work at a small company and we have a Christmas party at a restuarant, the boss pays for everything, even drinks, and you can bring your spouse/significant other. We also have a summer party at the boss's house. I actually like my co-workers (for the most part) and getting together outside of the office is actually pleasant. I enjoy the company parties.

  Report Abuse
• 
  Posted by countnchickn Fri May 15, 2009 10:01am PDT

  Umm hello were in a recession. No company picnics are given.

  Report Abuse
• 
  Posted by Alicia H Fri May 15, 2009 10:32am PDT

  More importantly when was the last time your company had a picnic??????

  Report Abuse
• 
  Posted by SUSAN M Fri May 15, 2009 10:34am PDT

  The last office picnic I went to was at a bowling alley in the air conditioning. They rented the bowling alley and we could bowl and eat for free, watch how the pin machines work and all was free except the arcade games they couldnt make free. We all had a blast, but that was 3 yrs ago. We are in a recession and many companies are on the brink of going out of business. I would go to a picnic now at my current job since I actually like most of the people I work with. Doubt we will get one.

  Report Abuse
• 
  Posted by Mrs. Carol B Fri May 15, 2009 5:14pm PDT

  The last company sponsored event I went to was a Boston Red Sox game with my employer, his wife and two other co-workers. We went in a limosine and picked up food to go from a fancy restaurant to eat on the way. We had a blast. That was back in 1987 or so if my memory serves me well. Employers don't do those things anymore. In fact, for nurses's day my employer gives us a token like a water bottle with their name advertised all over it. I think they should give something more personal like nice note pads that say "Nurses are special people" or something like that and NOT use their ADVERTISING BUDGET to pretend they are giving us something to show their appreciation for our hard word. Would love a company paid picnic, outing of some sort.

  Report Abuse
• 
  Posted by Angela Fri May 15, 2009 6:04pm PDT

  Okay, STOP!

  I'm usually at the front of the line saying that employers need to do more for employees, and most of the time, they do. HOWEVER, there still are employers out there who are doing things (yes, even in this economy) to try make working for tolerable.

  I'll start with my husband's company: He works for an extremely large, corporate law office. They have made a lot of cut backs. However, they do have a company picnic every Summer for their employees and their families at the local amusement park. Tickets are only $10/per person and include a catered lunch as well as an extensive list of door prizes. We go every year, and always invite other people to come with us. It's a really good time and very family friendly. However, I'm always surprised at the number of people my husband works with who refuse to go. They fail to realize this is an excellent opportunity to not only to socialize, but also to network.

  When I was younger, I used to turn my nose up at these things too. However, I came to realize that no employer is obligated to show you that they appreciate you at all. At one of my old jobs, they had a catered Christmas party at the facility, and made sure that all staff working had coverage so that they could come over and hang out and enjoy some top notch food. The first two years I was there, I didn't go. Once I finally did, and everyone there was so happy to see me, and I saw the great spread, I made sure I told everyone else I worked with never to miss it.

  I work in a small office now. Sometimes it's great, and sometimes really not. We don't have a picnic, but we had a very nice "holiday" party (one of our bosses is Jewish), and they took us out for a nice meal at a very nice restaraunt. I wouldn't have dreamed of snubbing them.

  If morale is really low where you work, is there anything you can do to lift it up? Maybe putting yourself out there in a positive way could really highlight you as a leader. I know it's gotten me more than one promotion, and my husband too!

  Report Abuse
• 
  Posted by Me Mon May 18, 2009 5:22am PDT

  My company has a company picnic every year and it is very nice. Good food, free alcohol, and tons of stuff for the kids to do. I work for a company on the top of the Best Companies to Work For list. Look at the list, try to get hired by one of those companies. Companies that treat their employees nicely are priceless.

  Report Abuse
• 
  Posted by RichardM Mon Jun 29, 2009 8:09am PDT

  There's no one answer to this question. Different companies show appreciation to their employees in different ways. The recession is the wild card that's thrown everything out of whack this year. If my employer doesn't have it's annual picnic this year, I'm okay with that. They have resisted layoffs, mandatory weeks off without pay and other tough choices that many other companies have had to resort to.

  Report Abuse