Should You Give Ang Baos At Your Workplace?

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Thinking of giving out ang bao packets to your colleagues or employees?

Often given by married or older individuals to single or younger people, this gesture is done to wish or inspire good luck and to ward off evil. With such gracious intentions, why not?

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But how much money should an ang bao be worth? Custom dictates that the monetary value of each red packet should be of an even number. But RM2 does not seem enough, RM4 is a no-no (simply put, 4 = death in Chinese) and RM10 might feel a little too generous for 10 co-workers whom you might not really want to spend money on.

And what if you are the boss and you don’t think your workers deserve ang bao money? Or if they do, how do you give without looking stingy or being too generous?

General Rules: Do’s and Don’t

Is giving ang bao even appropriate? Should you give motivational quotes, fortune cookies, or mandarine oranges instead? Will giving certain sums of money be insulting to your co-workers or employees?

Generally, you will have to be in tune with the current culture and attitude of your workplace. Usually, ang baos would probably go well if gift-giving during festive seasons is already a thing at your office.

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Should I put chocolate coins in the ang baos?

Here are some ‘common sense’ do’s and don’t’s of ang bao giving, or any type of gift-swapping, for that matter:

Do's:

1. As corny as it is, do give out of the goodness of your heart and the spirit of the season

2. Do make sure you count in everyone; have your personal budget for your ang bao giving!

3. Do make sure your colleagues or employees are receptive or open to receiving these gestures

4. Do make sure that giving out ang bao or money is not against any current workplace rules, tradition, or sensitivities

Don’t's:

1. Don’t use the ang bao as a bribe or a threat, or a show of dominance

2. Don’t play favourites, as walls have ears and everyone will know who got what

3. Don’t give expired or expiring vouchers or coupons you got for free, because that’s just a jerk move

4. Don’t give fake money, unless you know that your office environment is open and receptive to such jokes

Value-wise, you should probably give at your own capacity and discretion. That said, Singaporean online shopping platform, 65daigou.com, has come out with a tongue-in-cheek guide to ang bao giving:

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Trust the Singaporeans....

But with a cooling economy, you’re probably not feeling very generous (and the Ringgit is definitely not as strong as the Singapore Dollar, so there). You’ll of course want to give those you’re closer to a bit more, but make sure you are fair, or that the values don’t differ so much that it starts office gossip and incites envy.

Here’s a rough estimate as to how much you’d probably want to give:

Co-Worker:

RM8 - 20 - RM8 has the double meaning of luck so if you’re able, probably go for that.

Juniors/Mentees:

RM8 and upwards - you can keep it fair regardless of rank, and 8 is a nice number

Cleaner:

RM8... or more - be nice to the cleaner especially if she's constantly having to clear your full paper bins or overnight coffee cups.

Your Boss:

Probably not necessary and best not to.

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Any team building exercise with food is a good team building exercise

Alternatively, you could just treat everyone for a nice Lunar New Year team lunch. Or give mandarines or something. Or chocolate coins, you cheapskate.

Do you get ang baos from your boss or co-workers, or is it a huge no-no where you work? Tell us about your job, and find out what others have to say about their workplace!