FloraCraft owner gives $4 million in Christmas bonuses; that’s almost $20,000 per worker

Dec 20, 2018

How many stockings do you need for $20,000? Close to 200 workers in Michigan will be asking themselves that question this Christmas.

FloraCraft owner Lee Schoenherr has awarded his 200 employees a total of $4 million in year-end bonuses, which means about $20,000 per worker, CBS News reports.

The company said the customers’ bonuses will be based on length of service. The bonuses will be paid part in cash and part as an addition to the employees’ 401(k) accounts, according to the company’s blog post. The average tenure at the company is about nine years. The company said the highest gifts will go toward those who spent 40 or so years at the company. Those employees will earn roughly $60,000.

Schoenherr said he offered his customers the immense bonuses for all the help they provide every year in building his business.

“I believe strongly in giving back to the community by supporting initiatives that make Ludington (Michigan) a wonderful place to live, work and raise a family,” Schoenherr said in the blog post. “A few years ago, I began thinking that I would like to do something more targeted for our employees, who really are the heart and soul of FloraCraft.”

FloraCraft CEO Eric Erwin told CBS that Schoenherr wanted to offer the bonuses for a few years. But only now was the right time.

“He wants to do this while he could enjoy giving back to the people who have given so much to him,” Erwin said. “The business climate is good and we feel good about where we are.”

Employees cheered and applauded the decision, according to The Detroit Free Press.

“It was very humbling. I started crying — it was huge for him to do something like that for everybody,” said Mary Overla, according to the Free Press.