cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/9823286

‘Tis the season to celebrate our loved ones, and also for employers to show how much they care.

Whether by throwing a Christmas bash or handing out extra cash, businesses around the world are broadly expected to offer their dedicated staff a festive token of their appreciation.

And who deserves more recognition than the workers who keep our healthcare systems afloat?

Yet, the senior management team at one hospital apparently decided that rather than boost their staff’s pay or treat them to a slap-up meal, they would provide them with…

Potatoes.

The questionable move was broadcast to social media by an X/Twitter user who calls herself Amanda B.

She explained dejectedly: “My work is doing a potato bar as our Christmas bonus. I’m literally getting a hospital potato as a bonus.”

She then added: “They also said it has a $15 (£11.85) value so it will be taxed on our next check. Does anyone need an assistant so I can just quit right now?”

  • CashewNut 🏴󠁢󠁥󠁧󠁿
    link
    fedilink
    English
    1301 year ago

    Capitalism is starting to feel like a massive piss-take. You’ve got corps laughing all the way to the bank with billions in profits feeding their employees with fucking potatoes.

    Surely something has to give?

    • @xkforce@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      481 year ago

      Tbh I am kind of surprised no one has literally eaten some of the rich by now for nourishment.

      • @WhatAmLemmy@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        241 year ago

        I expect nothing will happen right through the crops failing, famines, mass migrations, wet bulb heat waves, ecological collapse… Nothing good anyway… Most likely fascist police state; probably sooner than later.

    • Chainweasel
      link
      fedilink
      English
      221 year ago

      The divide will keep growing until people start to get hungry.
      We’ve already proven time and time again that the worst they’re going to get out of us for anything they do is harsh words and disapproval. And since they know the worst we can do is complain they’re going to keep doing it.
      There won’t be any legislation or policy charges to help us.
      When we can’t eat and can’t feed our children we’ll finally have to motivation to make the changes ourselves.

      • @EatYouWell@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        71 year ago

        Yup, they know the population is placated by social media, but their mistake is thinking that makes them immune from the guillotine.

        • Chainweasel
          link
          fedilink
          English
          51 year ago

          It does though, as long as we have our bread and circuses they’re safe, and nothing will change until one or both dry up.

    • @CobblerScholar@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      111 year ago

      It has multiple times, housing bubble, dot com bubble, soon the used car bubble, then it’ll be another housing bubble with apartments etc… Capitalism has such a stranglehold on the world that it’s going to take a very long time for it to change enough to be called something else that actually works

      • metaStatic
        link
        fedilink
        11 year ago

        same people who are just starting to see how democracy works too

    • @quindraco@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      11 year ago

      We could always embrace capitalism by getting rid of corporations, like as a concept. They’re a fundamentally anti-capitalist idea.

    • @jimbolauski@lemm.ee
      link
      fedilink
      English
      01 year ago

      More than likely the hospital is a non profit, so the profits at all costs doesn’t really work.

      • @nomous@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        11 year ago

        “Non-profit” doesn’t mean it doesn’t make money and doesn’t prevent hospital administration from taking massive pay bumps.

  • @DrPop@lemmy.ml
    link
    fedilink
    English
    68
    edit-2
    1 year ago

    Here is a little something from the IRS pub 525 about bonuses.

    Bonuses and awards. Bonuses or awards you receive for outstanding work are included in your income and should be shown on your Form W-2. These include prizes such as vacation trips for meeting sales goals. If the prize or award you receive is goods or services, you must include the FMV of the goods or services in your income. However, if your employer merely promises to pay you a bonus or award at some future time, it isn’t taxable until you receive it or it’s made available to you.

    So do they really believe the fair market value of a potato is $12? The IRS doesn’t go by retail price.

    The FMV for a pound of russet potatoes is $2.50 soo yeah no they are doing too much and should be reported.

    Meals and lodging

    You don’t include in your income the value of meals and lodging provided to you and your family by your employer at no charge if the following conditions are met.

    The meals are: Furnished on the business premises of your employer, and Furnished for the convenience of your employer.

    • @EatYouWell@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      211 year ago

      The cost of food is not the only factor that determines it’s value. It’s a service being provided, not an object.

      It’s still a bullshit bonus and everyone who thought it was a good idea should kill themselves, but they didn’t just get a raw potato.

    • @eclectic_electron@sh.itjust.works
      link
      fedilink
      English
      101 year ago

      It’s a “potato bar” not just a potatoes to presumably that price is intended to include all the bacon, cheese, etc.

      Really though it’s probably just whatever the hotel cafeteria charges for potato because that’s a lot easier than coming up with a new price and then justifying it in case of an audit.

      • @DrPop@lemmy.ml
        link
        fedilink
        English
        21 year ago

        I believe they have to be doing something shady, there is no way in hell that would cost$15 per person. Even a nice potato bar is $11 per person according to Google. I’m not an expert in business finance but I know bulk means less cost.

    • @agissilver@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      51 year ago

      The last part makes it sound like the potato bonus is not taxable. I guess it depends on how you interpret employer “convenience” here.

      • @SirQuackTheDuck@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        31 year ago

        If it’s a potato feast as lunch, it’s not taxable and if they still deduct it, it’s wage theft.

        So, get your Christmas bonus by suing your employer, then get the actual bonus by leaving and getting a less toxic employer. Don’t forget to roast them harder than the potato on Glassdoor as you’re leaving.

  • @HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    361 year ago

    I remember the week after I saved a client forty five large in taxes, my boss gave me a ten dollar gift card to Walmart. I don’t have many kind things to say about that boss.

    • @beyondthegrave@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      91 year ago

      I saved a multi-million $ project from going down the toilet and jeopardizing a whole bunch of client contracts. I was rewarded with a demotion when the company was acquired months later.

    • @DrPop@lemmy.ml
      link
      fedilink
      English
      61 year ago

      Technically gift cards are taxable but if it’s not reported who is gonna know.

    • @Potatos_are_not_friends@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      51 year ago

      I feel bad because my company didn’t do shit for my team last year. So I gave my entire team of twenty, $20 gift cards out of my own pocket. $500 total.

      It was met with a “Happy holidays” but I wonder if people think I’m a bad boss too.

  • Marxism-Fennekinism
    link
    fedilink
    English
    21
    edit-2
    1 year ago

    Perhaps a sign that the hospital admin needs a potato canon to the face, in their next group Minecraft session.

  • @xkforce@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    201 year ago

    The most surprising thing about this is this wasnt in the US. It seems like such an american capitalist douchebag thing to do.

  • Vox
    link
    fedilink
    English
    171 year ago

    Very much a theme this year. My company normally gives equity (that cashes out over 3 years ofc) every end of year for the past 4-5 years. This year however, no equity allotments announced, instead we get a floor pizza party with ice cream. People are less than enthused.

  • Arthur Besse
    link
    fedilink
    English
    17
    edit-2
    1 year ago

    this “story” is spam, actually.

    the dearth of people in this thread who can identify it as such is sad evidence of a lack of media literacy.

    edit: i can’t reply to @kescusay@lemmy.world because i deleted this post from lemmy.ml, but, i see they replied:

    It’s the Independent, not spam. Indy100 is part of the Independent.

    so, ok, I looked, and yeah, I see this “indy100” site is indeed part of a business called “The Independent” which carries the name of a former newspaper.

    But this story, like most of the content on indy100, appears to have no basis in reality. It is not “news”, it is dishonest garbage pretending to be factual for the purpose of selling the audience’s attention to advertisers. aka spam.

  • Rhaedas
    link
    fedilink
    141 year ago

    The best part is that you don’t dare question what you do get, or you receive the “well, at least it’s something”. Yeah, I guess so, but if the intent is to make the employee feel valued it’s not working very well. I do have to say that a baked potato is still better than some things I’ve seen posted before.

    • notsorryforpartying
      link
      fedilink
      English
      16
      edit-2
      1 year ago

      Imo a bad reward like this is worse than nothing at all. Like they think I’m a moron or peasant who is dumb enough to appreciate it, insulting my intelligence

    • @hark@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      71 year ago

      If it’s being taxed at a value of $15 then they’re forced to overpay for a potato which actually is worse than nothing.

    • N-E-N
      link
      fedilink
      English
      11 year ago

      Tbh I’d take a potato over the nothing I got, looks tasty

  • Ook the Librarian
    link
    fedilink
    English
    91 year ago

    Did that article have blank templates to fill in tweets? It seemed like there was a quota of tweets the author had to fill in the spaces for and missed one.