Holiday bonus: It's feast or famine

If you're going home empty-handed from the company Christmas party, you're like most of us. The holiday bonus is a thing of the past, or maybe just a thing of an overworked imagination: It never existed at half of the 350 companies surveyed in a recent poll conducted by Hewitt Associates.

Many more companies pay out performance bonuses, but the idea of a company CEO gathering the staff in his or her well-funded arms for a big hug doesn't square with reality.

A few notable exceptions: The State Bank & Trust in Fargo, N.D., drew headlines last week when it gave out $500,000 to its employees, directing them to "pay it forward" and each give away the $1,000 to charitable causes. Hormel Foods Corp., meanwhile, gave out a record $15.4 million to employees through its profit-sharing plan.

Yet those generous gestures are rare and getting rarer. You could blame the credit crisis spawned by subprime mortgages for making everyone feel stingy, but the titans of the holiday bonus business, Wall Street bankers, report an average 14 percent increase in holiday bonuses this year. That's despite steering the country into the mortgage crisis and consequently pummeling some banks' stocks with drops of as much as 45 percent. If you don't get a bonus this year, at least one banker will feel your pain: Morgan Stanley Chief Executive John Mack told his board that he accepts blame for the losses the bank suffered this year and elected not to take his bonus, which last year was worth about $40 million.

Here's a rundown of some Minnesota companies and their largesse, or lack thereof.

VIRACON

The Owatonna maker of architectural glass, the kind used in buildings such as the IDS Center, paid out $7.2 million last week in profit sharing, handing each employee an average paycheck of $2,780.

CARGILL

At Thanksgiving, employees get a certificate for a Honeysuckle White whole turkey and a can of Diamond Crystal kosher salt, both brands of the Minnetonka-based agribusiness giant. Bonus-eligible employees get sums at fiscal year-end, May 31. The company's 5,308 local employees and 392 retiree volunteers can donate their turkeys to Second Harvest Heartland for those in need, and 196 people this year chose to do so.

TARGET

At Target Corp., department heads are given a "nominal fund," and given leeway in how to gather their "teams" for the holidays, said spokeswoman Kari Thompson. Employees often donate time at local charities, she said. Thompson and 65 of her colleagues spent five hours Thursday at the Salvation Army toy shop in northeast Minneapolis and used the "nominal fund" money to go out to lunch at Jax Cafe afterward. "It's almost like team-building to be there together and helping others," Thompson said. "People feel better about that than some fancy lunch."

GENERAL MILLS

No cash, but there is a free lunch, same as last year, spokesman Tom Forsythe said. "Roast turkey and dressing and cranberries and that sort of stuff." The company's performance bonuses arrive in June.

SUPERVALU

No cash here, either. Holiday parties are not uncommon but vary by department at the grocery giant, whose store brands include Cub Foods and Save A Lot. Supervalu also sends $100 gift cards to the families of employees serving overseas in the military.

LAND O'LAKES

The food cooperative and butter maker throws a holiday children's party with food, games, prizes and horse-drawn sleigh rides at the corporate office in Arden Hills. It's a longstanding event.

CHS

A performance bonus based on employees' work goes out in November, while profit sharing based on the company's performance goes out in March. It will be 5 percent of eligible salary this year. About 900 employees also dined on a free lunch this month at the Inver Grove Heights headquarters of this Fortune 500 energy, grains and foods company.

TWIN SIX

A two-man operation, the bicycle jersey designer and manufacturer gives out "pats on the back and a few beers," according to co-founder Brent Gale.

PARASOLE RESTAURANT CO.

A $25 gift card for meals at a Parasole restaurant, including Chino Latino, the Good Earth, Muffuletta and others. Employees also are eligible for cash prizes and gift cards (Best Buy, Target, etc.) depending on how many Parasole holiday gift cards they sell to customers. More money is available this year than last, according to the company.

BUCA

The locally based restaurant chain, which saw its former CEO go to prison this year and announced last week that it was exploring options that include putting itself up for sale, does not have anything planned for employees this year.

BRIGGS AND MORGAN

THE LAW FIRM, ONE OF THE LARGEST IN THE STATE, HAS LONG HANDED OUT HOLIDAY BONUSES TO ITS NON-LAWYER STAFF OF ABOUT 200 PEOPLE. CASH PAYMENTS RANGE FROM $100 TO $1,100, DEPENDING ON YEARS OF SERVICE. A SECOND BONUS WAS INTRODUCED LAST YEAR, THANKS TO HIGH PROFIT. IT CONTINUES THIS YEAR, PAYING $800 -- $250 TO EMPLOYEES WHO HAVE WORKED THERE LESS THAN A YEAR. THE FIRM ALSO THROWS A WINTER DINNER PARTY WITH PRIZES IN LATE JANUARY OR EARLY FEBRUARY. THIS YEAR IT'S AT MISSION AMERICAN KITCHEN & BAR.

Marvin Windows

Profit-sharing, which is not expected to exceed last year's $15.7 million, will be split among 3,489 employees. The actual amount will be released this week.

BEST BUY

The nation's largest electronics retailer doesn't offer holiday bonuses. Instead, it has what spokeswoman Kelly Groehler described as a "robust rewards program," which includes bonuses that are given out in late February at the end of the Richfield-based company's fiscal year.

RAINBOW FOODS

There's a Christmas Eve lunch or dinner for all employees at all stores. The company, owned by Milwaukee-based Roundy's Supermarkets Inc., also distributes a company gift card to employees (but would not disclose the amount). Same as last year.

LUNDS/BYERLY'S

A holiday meal served at work and a Lunds and Byerly's gift card. (The local grocery chain would not disclose the amount of the gift cards.) New this year: a free Lunds and Byerly's product.

KOWALSKI'S

The grocery company sends money to each store and allows managers to decide whether it's for a party or for cash handouts -- a long-standing practice. The pool is the same this year as it was last year. Owners Jim and Mary Kowalski also have a party at their house for the approximately 55 employees at companywide positions.

INTERNATIONAL DAIRY QUEEN

IDQ, owned by Warren Buffett and run from its Edina headquarters, had a holiday party at Windows on Minnesota, the restaurant at the top of the IDS Tower. The operator of 5,000 Dairy Queens around the world brought in a live band, prime rib and a dessert bar for 300 guests. Same as last year.

QUALITY BIKE PRODUCTS

The Bloomington-based bike parts supplier hands out a $600 holiday bonus to each of its approximately 400 employees, the same as last year. The staff Christmas party, held last year at the Water Park at the Mall of America, will be inhouse this year, with karaoke and indoor bike racing at the warehouse. A company profit-sharing program, meanwhile, sends out checks every four months.

PEPSIAMERICAS INC.

Staff at the Minneapolis corporate office of the $3.7 billion bottler, the second-largest in the world, get a $25 gift card for a local grocery store. Some of the company's 100 locations around the country hand out vouchers for free turkeys.

C.H. ROBINSON WORLDWIDE

There's a free holiday lunch for the Eden Prairie-based company's 1,110 local employees. A spokesperson for the transportation and logistics giant said end-of-year bonuses are determined by individual performances.

INSTITUTE FOR AGRICULTURAL TRADE POLICY

The Minneapolis nonprofit does not hand out bonuses or cash, but employees get a paid week off that doesn't count toward vacation between Christmas and New Year's.

Staff writers Dee DePass, Kara McGuire and Jackie Crosby contributed to this report. Matt McKinney • 612-673-7329