MONEY MORAL DILEMMA. Would you put £10 in Kitty's birthday kitty?

Nicster83

No I wouldn't. this is slightly off topic but along the same theme - something my work does every year that annoys me is have a kitty for the Site Service Officer and Cleaner at Christmas. Everyone in the entire building is asked to contribute and then there is a nice big presentation where they're given lots of gifts and about £100 worth of gift vouchers. The Manager always announces about how they do such a good job and all without praise etc. The thing is though, it's their jobs! They get paid to do it! It's not like they're cleaning the place out of the goodness of their hearts. The SSO gets paid more than I do, why SHOULD I contribute to a massive gift for him every year? I don't get one!!

Sami_Bee

£10!! :eek: No way jose!
I don't even know the woman, I'd chuck £2 if I actually had some change in my purse but even if I'd been there a few years I wouldn't give £10 to someone's collection, if I like them that much I'd get a gift from just me!

ellybelly89

in my old job the person whose birthday it was brought in cakes. only money/gifts were given for people leaving and then it was what you wanted to give.

Cloudane

Manilla wrote: »

No, I wouldn't pay £10 towards Kitty's kitty and would politely explain why, eg being a new employee I don't know Kitty and £10 is very generous for someone I don't know, etc.

However, I have another dilemma. Having organised leaving/new baby collections in the past, how would you deal with those people who eagerly sign a card and then don't put any money towards a present?

To me this is, at best, dishonest as by signing the card it implies that you've contributed to the present when you haven't. When I confronted the guy who did this in front of me (although he probably wasn't alone) he shrugged and said he was wishing them well and couldn't understand my frustration. Am I being too strict or do you agree that it's really not acceptable?

I think it's perfectly possible to wish someone well, without having to 'prove' it by spending money on them. Or even in the case of the original dilemma of the newbie being asked for someone they don't know, to be human enough to wish a fellow colleague a happy birthday (signing a card being a good enough way to do this) without knowing them enough to justify contributing towards a gift.

robpw2

yes i just think it will be my birthday in 3 months and i would like the favour returned

Surfer

Also annoys me when they come collecting for a charity and it is a charity that you would never donate to at any time.

rcherryuk

Tali wrote: »

I would offer a token amount and point out that I'm not flushed with cash, not having been paid yet, and hardly know her.

I couldn't have said it better!

Rob

Countertenor

No, for several reasons:
1) Whoever asked you in the first place was being unreasonable, expecting someone new to contribute at all
2) £10 is far too much for a B/day present anyway - £2 would seem more reasonable
3) Why would you want to give money to someone you've never met - you don't even know if you like her!
4) As it's a new job, you might not even be there next week - you might hate it & leave
5) (Assuming you stay) when it comes to your turn for a B/day present, all the people there now might have gone too!

pineapple

I can't imagine anyone being so crass as to ask a new staff member for £10. In fact I wouldn't much like it as an old staff member! I would politely decline and maybe offer a pound as a token gesture.
In my view the fairest way to collect is to 'pass the hat' or leave out a tin so that people can contribute anonymously.
To ellybelly, yes, in my experience it has usually been the case that the person whose birthday it is buys cakes for everyone.
Even worse are the charity collections. In my organisation, sponsored walks are endemic. On the last occasion someone collared a whole meeting to sponsor a flippin scout hut (!) and you couldn't really decline without looking a complete meany.

redglass_2

scotsbob wrote: »

Not for a 50 year old. If she was a bit younger it might be worth it to get noticed..

And they say chivalry is dead! :rolleyes: Why is her age mentioned at all? The fact that she's 50 doesn't alter the issue, which is:

a) whether we should have all these collections at work imposed on us (no, in my opinion, it should be entirely up to the individual) and
b) whether new members of staff should be pressured into them (again, no).

Some of the sums quoted by other MSE-ers are insane - no wonder half the country's in debt if people are being forced to stump up that much.