Father’s Day: Top 10 Ways to Celebrate Dads in The Workplace

Happy Father’s Day from Recruiter.com! According to some research, 81.7% of fathers were also working. You likely have some fathers at your company who will be celebrating Father’s Day soon.

It can boost your employee brand, culture, and retention when you show appreciation to these fathers on this special day. But what can you do to show that you care about your employees?

Keep reading for a few ideas to make your company’s dads feel appreciated.

Why It’s Important to Celebrate Father’s Day

Any celebration in the office can help boost employee morale (and productivity). Father’s Day gives you the perfect opportunity for a celebration where you can show appreciation for all the dads that work in your office.

These dads may have missed important moments with their children to work for your office. Or they may have been up all night with their crying children and then showed up to work bright and early the following day to be a productive staff member.

Taking this Father’s Day to show your appreciation for these employees can make them feel valued.

1. Offer Tickets to an Attraction or Experience

The one thing that matters most to these working dads is their kids, so why not offer them an experience that they can share with their kids? You might want to give them complimentary tickets to the zoo, museum, an event at a community center, or a local sporting event.

If they’re working from home, you can send them a gift card for Uber Eats or another food delivery service to have a special meal with their family. You could also offer some at-home activities they can share with their children.

2. Plan a Family-Friendly Picnic

You could also host a company family picnic at a local park. This event will not only show how important family is to your company culture, but it can also give your employees a chance to spend some time with their children.

Hosting a company picnic can also boost employee morale by allowing coworkers to meet each other’s families and learn more. You can also hold different events, like potato sack races or a pie-throwing contest.

3. Create Gift Bags for Their Children

If you want to make your dad’s Father’s Day special, create gift bags for their children. This could include a kit to make some crafts for their dad as a gift. For example, you could create blank Father’s Day cards that the children can fill out and give to their dads to show them how much they matter.

4. Host a Bring Your Kids to Work Day

If you don’t want to set up a work picnic, you could offer to let the dads bring their children to work. You don’t have to make this event last the entire workday, but it can be an excellent way for parents to bond with their kids and show them what they do each day.

This can also be great for team morale. You can plan events for the children while they’re there to keep them entertained. After all, most kids may not want to sit in a cubicle all day.

If you’re working remotely, you can do this through Zoom. Set up Zoom meetings that parents can share with their children and do different events together.

5. Offer Time Off

Nothing can be a better way to show your dads that you appreciate them than offering them time off to spend with their kids. For example, you could offer them a three-day weekend by giving them Monday or Friday off.

You’ll want to tell them they can have the day off ahead of time and make sure they take that time off. However, if you do this, you must ensure that you also offer the same to mothers for Mother’s Day.

For employees that don’t have children, you may also want to offer them a day off at some point so that they don’t feel left out either. If you can afford it, you may even want to offer the day off to your employees in honor of all the working dads.

6. Give Corporate Gifts

If you’re going to give the dads a gift, make sure you don’t give them a stereotypical mug or other tacky gifts. Ensure that it’s a gift that’s thoughtful.

For example, you could get them a Yeti coffee cup instead of a classic coffee mug. You could also gift them something a little bit more expensive. If you aren’t sure what to get, you can never go wrong with Amazon gift cards.

7. Take Employees Out to Lunch

There’s nothing wrong with taking out your dad’s to an employee lunch. If you have a lot of employees, it might be better to have each manager take them out in each department. You may even want to host a poll to let the dads pick where they want to go.

If your business has a smaller budget, you may want to have an office potluck. To make it even more special for Father’s Day, ask each dad to bring pictures of their children and share some memories or fun facts about them. This way, each employee gets to know each other a little bit better as well.

If your office is virtual, you can send them an Uber Eats card and host a Zoom meeting.

8. Host a Team Bonding Competition

If you have a lot of dads at your company, you may want to host a friendly competition. You could have the dads join teams and host competitions that can build employee morale.

If you have a work picnic, you may even want to include the children. They can team up with their dads to bond together to win cool prizes.

9. Host a Virtual Team Event

If your team is in a virtual office or a hybrid environment, it can be challenging to get everyone together. However, Zoom allows you to hold all kinds of different events.

For example, you could host a Zoom trivia event where you ask different dad-themed questions. Invite all of your employees to participate and win cool prizes. Since you’ll be virtual, you may even want to invite your dads to bring their kids along for some extra help.

You could also hold a Dad joke contest if you don’t want to do trivia. Have your dads bring in their best Dad jokes and have the children vote on which ones are the best (or worst).

10. Offer Flexibility

Remember that not all of your employees are going to be fathers. Some may have lost their father figures, can’t become fathers, or don’t wish to celebrate fatherhood or the holiday. This is why it’s always important to be flexible and sensitive to your employees’ needs.

Don’t force them to participate in any events or Father’s Day celebrations if they don’t wish to. Before you host an event or do anything special, ask yourself how it will affect other employees at the company. Keep that mentality in mind whenever you’re planning anything for Father’s Day or any other future celebration. If you’re unsure what is appropriate, talk with your HR professional.

Discover More Ways to Celebrate Dads in the Workplace

Any of these events are a great personal gesture for the dads at your company. These will give your working dads a chance to be in their children’s lives and show that you care about them and their families.

Regardless of how you celebrate Father’s Day at your company, ensure it’s intentional and boosts your employee culture. If you’re interested in more ideas on how to run a successful business, make sure that you check out our HR publication, Recruiter Today. 

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