‘Rather have got nothing’: Worker says his company thanked staff for two months of mandatory overtime. Then he showed what they got

A Reddit user shared a photo of the item his company gave employees after two months of mandatory overtime. The post appeared in the r/mildlyinfuriating subreddit under the username Cute-Afternoon8849. He described the gift as the company’s way of saying thank you for the extra hours.

The image showed a small clear box of Tic Tac mints resting on a printed card. The card featured the words “Thank you FOR YOUR” followed by the phrases “COMMITmint,” “ENCOURAGEmint,” “INVESTmint,” and “INVOLVEmint.” The mints appeared to be a standard miniature size rather than a full pack.

Cute-Afternoon8849 wrote in the post, “Rather have got nothing.” He presented the photo as evidence of the company’s response to the extended overtime period.

Workers described receiving small items after extra work or long service

Several people who commented on the post shared their own experiences with workplace thank-you gifts that they viewed as low-value. One commenter wrote about a sales team dinner where a manager handed out $100 gift vouchers but forgot one employee. The next Monday, that employee found a tiny bouquet of flowers and an apology note on his desk, but no voucher.

Another person described working in IT at an insurance company. They stated that the sales team received annual conference trips and family invitations for top performers, while the IT staff received a quart-size Ziploc bag and as much free candy as they could fit inside it.

A different commenter recalled a parent’s 25-year work anniversary at a corporate job. The parent selected a gift from a catalog and ended up with a pair of binoculars. The commenter wrote that the parent said, “great, binoculars, what I always wanted.”

One person stated that a mother received a $25 gift card to Tim Hortons and a mug with the company logo for five years of service. The same commenter added that a father received a card and a pen for ten years at his workplace.

A commenter wrote, “This would be cute as swag you’d get at an event. Totally inappropriate for ‘employee appreciation.’” Another stated, “There’s a special quality to corporate b—–t where they can give employees something and it’s somehow more insulting than giving them nothing.”

One person described a holiday card that included a $100 bill presented as a bonus. The commenter later claimed the money came from customer tips that the owner had kept and then distributed. Another commenter responded that this appeared to be wage theft and that the staff might be entitled to the tips. Underpaying employees has been a concerning trend in modern day work culture as even companies like DoorDash admitted it underpaid workers. 

A commenter wrote, “You know what makes a nice, meaningful gift? A product that is known for being one of the smallest and cheapest things money can buy.” Another added, “Well, this isn’t even a full size box!”

One person stated that a company once served reduced supermarket sandwiches cut in half as a lunch thank-you, with the packaging left in the bin. The commenter noted that the company appeared to have gone to multiple local shops specifically for the discounted items.