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Employee Appreciation Day
is Friday 5 March 2027.

Employee Appreciation Day, also called staff appreciation day, is the first Friday in March. In 2027 that is Friday 5 March. In 2028 it is Friday 3 March.

The thing people keep from it is a specific thank you from somebody they work with, so start there and spend the budget second.

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Ideas that cost little

Pizza is fine. It is also forgotten by Monday. These last longer.

  • A card for each person, with a message from everyone on their team.
  • A thank you from their manager that names one piece of work.
  • The afternoon off, announced in advance so people can plan for it.
  • Ten minutes in the team meeting where each person thanks one other person.
  • A note to somebody in another team who made your year easier.

Whatever you choose, make it the same for people at home and people in the office.

Things to do as a team

  • Clear Friday afternoon of meetings, so the thanks is not squeezed between calls.
  • Ask the team a week before what they would like: a long lunch, an early finish, or a donation to a cause they pick.
  • Eat together at a time the late shift and the part timers can make, or send those who cannot a voucher for the same meal.
  • Thank the people whose work nobody sees until it stops: reception, cleaning, IT, the night shift.
  • Have a senior leader write to each team, naming one thing that team did this year.
  • Give each person an hour to spend on something they have wanted to learn.

For a single colleague, see thank you messages for colleagues.

A short organising checklist

  1. By mid February. Choose what you will do and agree the budget.
  2. Two weeks before. List everybody, including part timers, people on leave and people who work remotely. Tell managers the plan.
  3. Ten days before. Start a card for each person, so everyone has time to write.
  4. A week before. Announce any time off. Book food, with dietary needs asked for, and order anything that has to be delivered.
  5. The day before. Check nobody has been missed and every card has a few lines in it.
  6. On the day. Send the cards in the morning. Managers say their thank yous before lunch.
  7. Afterwards. Send cards to anybody who was off on their next working day, and note what worked for next year.

Thank you messages for a colleague

Name the work. That is the whole trick.

For a colleague

  • Thanks for jumping in on that, it made a real difference.

  • Really appreciate the help this week, saved me a lot of time.

  • Thanks for staying late to sort that out, it didn't go unnoticed.

  • Appreciate you talking me through that, made it much clearer.

  • The steer on that helped more than you know, thanks.

  • Cheers for covering that for me, properly appreciated.

From a manager

  • Thanks for how you handled that, it made a difficult week easier.

  • Really good work on that, thank you for seeing it through.

  • Appreciate the effort you put into that, it didn't go unnoticed.

  • Thanks for stepping up on that without being asked twice.

A thank you GIF

For the team channel on the day.

Free to use at work, in Slack, Teams or email.

A card for every person, without a spreadsheet.

Add Employee Appreciation Day as an occasion of your own.

  1. 01

    Add the date.

    Friday 5 March 2027, or any day you choose.

  2. 02

    Choose who to ask.

    Each person’s own team. They get a link by email or in Slack.

  3. 03

    Everyone writes a note.

    In a browser, with no account. Every card is sent that morning.

Create a card

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Questions

When is Employee Appreciation Day 2027?

Friday 5 March 2027. It is always the first Friday in March, so in 2028 it is Friday 3 March.

When is staff appreciation day 2027?

Staff appreciation day is another name for Employee Appreciation Day, so it is also Friday 5 March 2027.

Who started Employee Appreciation Day?

Bob Nelson, the author of 1001 Ways to Reward Employees, started it in 1995.

What do you do for Employee Appreciation Day?

Thank each person for something specific. A card from their team, a note from their manager, and time off if you can give it.

What do you write to appreciate an employee?

Name one piece of work and what it made possible. "The client call went well because of the hour you spent on the numbers."

How do you include remote staff?

Choose things that do not need an office. A card written in a browser reaches everyone the same way.

Is Employee Appreciation Day the same everywhere?

It began in the United States and is now marked in many countries on the same Friday. Nothing stops you choosing your own day.

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