Boss’s Day

What the day is

Boss's Day is observed on October 16, or the nearest working day. It is marked in the United States, Canada and a handful of other countries, and it asks employees to acknowledge their managers.

Origin and background

The origin is specific and slightly awkward. In 1958 Patricia Bays Haroski, working as a secretary at an insurance company in Illinois, registered the day with the United States Chamber of Commerce. Her boss was her father, and October 16 was his birthday. Her stated intention was to improve understanding between employees and managers, particularly for younger workers who she felt did not appreciate what the job involved.

The criticism has followed it ever since, and it is not unreasonable. Recognition normally flows from the person with more power to the person with less, and a day that reverses that can feel like an obligation rather than a gesture, particularly when the manager controls the pay review. Many workplaces handle this by ignoring it entirely, which is a defensible position.

The research on what employees actually want from managers is consistent and does not feature cards. Clarity about expectations, fair distribution of work, protection from unreasonable demands from above, useful feedback, and being trusted to do the job rank far higher than warmth. Manager quality is also one of the strongest predictors of whether people leave, which is the practical reason organizations care.

How to take part

• If you have a good manager, say something specific about what they actually do. Vague praise reads as obligatory.
• Do not organize a collection. Pooled cash gifts up the hierarchy put quiet pressure on the lowest-paid people in the room.
• If you manage people, the better use of the day is to ask what would make their week easier and then act on one answer.
• Skip it entirely if the relationship does not warrant it. A forced card is worse than nothing.
• Note that in many workplaces the real recognition day is the one where the budget is set.