Of Sweden's ten largest authorities, only two give all of their employees Christmas presents this year. Stefan Tengblad, who is a professor at the University of Gothenburg, recognizes the trends.
- It has gone down with Christmas gifts, I think there are more people offering Christmas dinner or Christmas lunch. You may feel that it is a bit luxurious to bid on both.
But Christmas presents are not an unnecessary gesture. It is a way to build relationships with employees by showing appreciation, says Stefan Tengblad.
- You have worked hard, worked overtime, there may have been rationalizations, then this is a way to show appreciation. You can do it in other ways, but a gift is a way to show appreciation beyond the more mundane contact between the manager and employees.
"Can be a disappointment"Pulling on Christmas presents during hard times is not a good idea.
- You create an expectation if you get Christmas presents one year. It can be disappointing, you may not get any motivation why you are withdrawing it, which means that the employees may think that the new management who made the decision does not treat the employees this, says Stefan Tengblad.
SVT Nyheter's survey to the largest authorities and companies shows that opinions are divided around Christmas tables and Christmas parties, but in many places it is up to each department and manager to make decisions about Christmas parties or Christmas lunch.
- Research has shown that social activities are good for creating community at work and community is good for collaboration. At a Christmas party, you can hang out in cozy forms and maybe meet colleagues you don't work with as much as you can get to know.