First published on Thursday, March 5, 2026
Last updated on Friday, March 6, 2026
Employee Appreciation Day is celebrated on the first Friday in March. Created over 30 years ago, the day gives the opportunity to shout out employee achievements.
But why not see recognition as a year-round thing? At BrightHR, we do. Praise, our employee recognition tool, is a free tool within the BrightHR platform. We’ve looked at the 92,473 shout-outs given by BrightHR clients in 2025. From “banging out paperwork” to “#bigbossenergy”, let’s take a look at the best (and strangest) reasons people were given praise in the last 12 months.
“Hit reply all to a company-wide email”
Sometimes, company-wide messages aren’t necessary. But in the case of Praise, we recommend shouting from the rooftops! The top 3 industries who’ve been busy praising were Professional Services (162,875 points), Care (43,405 points) and Education (35,525 points).
“Thank you for being my spider saviour”
It’s easy to single out employees who have worked on high-profile projects or campaigns. But no hero should be left unsung. Why not celebrate the little things, like the 23 people who were praised for spider-related feats of courage? We’d like to highlight the worker who was “brave in the face of adversity (spider on the shop floor)”.
A fifth of UK employees say they’ve never been thanked. So, why not spin these small acts of kindness into praise? It might just make someone feel web-solutely wonderful.
“Always going above and beyond”
40% of UK workers don’t feel motivated to go above and beyond their day to day duties. That’s 11% below the global average. However, the 2,056 people awarded praise for exceeding expectations might disagree. Especially the person who went “above and beyond to find the dumped bucket of clams”. What an un-shellfish act! We’re sure you’re the pearl of your team.
Other commendations for bravery included praise for unblocking a toilet, for picking up a dead mole, and for emptying “the fetid unidentifiable vegetable matter from the fridge.” Our data is anonymous or we’d give you a medal ourselves for that one!
And kudos to the employee who "found a guest's wedding ring that fell down the basin plughole. Probably rescued their holiday, if not their marriage!”
“Welcome to the chaos”
Bosses and managers used Praise to welcome 735 new starters in 2025. A public warm welcome is one of the fastest ways to help someone feel part of a team.
Praise and recognition should be an ongoing part of employee experience. Four in ten employees have considered leaving or have left a job because of loneliness, so you might find recognition helps retention, especially for remote workers.
“Lives the company values every day”
Consistency paid off for 804 people this year. Accolades were given to people whose good habits were on show every day. There’s a good reason to keep praising: employees whose managers acknowledge them for good work are five times more likely to stay with a company.
A survey in November 2025 noted that only 14% of UK professionals feel aligned with their company’s core values and workplace culture. And disengagement leads to resignations. So, now’s the time to highlight your workplace culture. You can add your company values to the Praise platform, to make it suit you.
“Happy work-iversary”
Many employees feel as if they’re only recognised with a formal email to tell them about an extra day’s holiday on a work anniversary. Celebrate your milestones with Praise and make sure everyone’s included. Congratulations went to someone’s “first week done and dusted” and to an astounding “56 years service”. What an achievement!
“Congratulations for completing every module of your online training”
A prevailing trend in Praise was celebrating courses. Well done to all of those who completed their BrightSafe health & safety courses and kept their workplaces safe. And for those who took BrightLearn e-learning courses on subjects like remote working and time management, congratulations for smashing your goals.
“It doesn’t go unnoticed”
And here’s the real point. You can award prizes, give a shout out in a newsletter, or put praise on the staffroom wall. But just naming the people who’ve done a good job may well be enough to keep them in the 44% of employees who’ll stay with you long term.
At BrightHR, we’re making staff recognition part of our day to day. Our Praise platform makes it fun, with a digital platform that has gamified the feedback process. With one click, our teams can celebrate and appreciate each other with peer-to-peer praise.
