"A donation has been made on your behalf..."

I'd be very annoyed too.

It is your choice as to whether you donate your bonus of a grocery voucher to a food bank or not.
You have contributed to the success of the company and deserve recognition of that; donating your bonus to charity is wrong and I wonder if the directors went without their own fat bonuses.

If the company is so successful then they could afford to do both.

There is an interesting thread on this subject on Mumsnet. Donating to a charity gives kudos to the donor, but not to the recipient who is the one actually making the donation as it is their gift/voucher. A better way would be to ask staff to nominate a charity of choice, not that I don't consider foodbank a good choice, but some may choose, as I would a dementia charity due to high incidence within the family for example.

Gill Donating to a charity gives kudos to the donor, but not to the recipient who is the one actually making the donation

I think that too, when people announce that they are donating to charity instead of sending me a Christmas card.
I already donate to several charities on a regular basis, plus I support someone if they’re doing some feat like a bungee jump or a 10km run.
But I love hearing from friends and family at Christmas.
I’d much rather they took the time to send me a personal message than make a donation to charity on my behalf. Of course they can always donate to charity as well.

Nottingham tram drivers are getting a Turkey bun this Christmas instead of a £25 bonus according th The Independent. (Vegetarians can have a baked potato)

We all enjoy getting a Christmas gift and it’s not too much to expect from an employer. This is a bit like the people who say they’re not sending Christmas cards and giving to charity instead. You’re left wondering if they really do that or are just cheapskates that can’t be honest and say we’re not giving/sending. Canadiagran you are right to be miffed.

Thanks all, nice to know I am not alone in thinking this way.

The company has done very well this year - they are a container port terminal, and business has been higher than normal this year with the exception of February and March which was a result of China shutting down. In fact with all the transport of imported PPE there were exceptional requests to rush containers and much extra effort by staff and dock workers to comply with requests.

The individual amount wasn't high, a $50 (about 35pounds) but taken all together with all western Canada locations and hundreds of employees, there was a sizable donation to food banks.

I just think with all of the stress of this year (we were considered front line), working out how to work safely, working extra hours it would have been the year to be grateful to the individual employees. And yes, the company will get a sizable tax write-off, since donating to charity is in a different deduction slot than employee bonuses or gifts. I'm sure we will see managers photos in the news letters as well.

Like I previously mentioned, I am all for donating to worthy causes, but if given a choice I would have chosen the Salvation Army since they do so much good here in town.

Rant over... have a lovely day all!

I wouldnt like it, what a cheap move

Tax advantages for the company but what for you?
You didnt even get to pick the cause you preferred!