Free Coffee?

[Kitsune]

I'm curious if the office you work at provides free coffee or not. Every place I've worked at until this recent job considered it a worker right as common as providing light and flush toilets. Is this a disappearing phenomenon?

[Shawnee123]

We have coffee pots for caf and decaf...with a mug to throw money in if you want or can. It's pretty much free. I throw in dollars here and there.

There are the inevitable spoiled people who like to drink the last of it, don't make another pot, and leave the switch on so the coffee pot burns to a crisp.

But it's nice to have the coffee available!

[Sundae]

I've worked in places where it's free and where it isn't. I was surprised when I started here because tea, coffee and real milk was provided, despite this being publicly funded (Primary Care Trust - local healthcare).

Then the PCT realised it was in financial difficulties and it was the first thing that went. We now have a tea & coffee fund for the floor (£2 per person per month) although I buy my fruit teas myself because I like to know exactly what I've got left - it would stress me out to really fancy a Peppermint Tea and find someone had left the box empty...

[lumberjim]

yes, but it sucks. i have a coffee maker and some starbucks for emergencies. usually i have dunkin donuts coffee brought to me by a minion.

[Kitsune]

Originally Posted by lumberjim

i have a coffee maker and some starbucks for emergencies.

I have a pot at my desk, too, which will remain until someone from the facilities group sees it and demands the "fire hazard" be removed from the building. The stuff that comes from our cafeteria is usually burnt, has grounds mixed in it from the filter breaking, and is so weak as to resemble heated brown water from the river. They even recently raised the price of the real coffee (the brewed stuff) to ninety-five cents and installed machines that mix heated water with syrup that charge what we were used to.

The last place I worked for had free coffee, free sodas (all the machines were set to "free vend"), and lunch was catered on Fridays.

Yeah, I miss the dot com era.

[Elspode]

We have coffee provided, not just to the office staff, but to the field guys as well via their own brew station in the Production area. We spend about (rummaging for the invoice I got yesterday) $350 per month average on coffee, sweeteners, creamer (Internation Coffee portion control packs, no less, although we have tons of the powdered stuff as well), stirs and cups.

Elimination of this benefit would probably result in revolt. If it ever does go away, though, I will absolutely get my own coffeemaker and coffee for my office on my own dime.

[lumberjim]

ah, coffee is on it's way. gotta love the minions.

[Shawnee123]

lumberjim ALWAYS gets the minions, why can't I have a minion? I want a minion and I want it now.

(What's a minion?)

[Sheldonrs]

Originally Posted by Shawnee123

lumberjim ALWAYS gets the minions, why can't I have a minion? I want a minion and I want it now.

(What's a minion?)

Would you like fries with that minion?

[lumberjim]

a salesman that is willing to run for stuff like coffee and lunch in hopes that the good karma will help him with gettting deals approved and billed quickly. it works.

this guy is even buying. looooooooooove the minions

[Sundae]

Back in the 80s I worked for an Life Assurance company that provided free lunch as well as all drinks. And I'm talking 3 course meal every day - choice of hot meal and/ or salad bar.

There was even an option to have a packed lunch if you wanted to go into town rather than sit with your colleagues in the restaurant.

SIGH.

[Cloud]

ah, coffee--a subject dear to my heart. Yes, my workplace provides free coffee, but I often bring my own anyway. I like the way I make it.

[Spexxvet]

The staff buys the coffee maker, coffee, and fixings. The doctor buys the electricity - he doesn't drink coffee at work. When the supplies get low, we take turns buying. Always Maxwell House and Coffeemate powdered.

[DanaC]

At the TownHall, we have tea, instant coffee etc in our Group rooms. When attending an official meeting, everyone in attendance has the opportunity to go to the little restaurant downstairs (restaurant glorifies it, it's a canteen with waitress service in the evenings) and have a meal and either tea or coffee. The meals are......good hearty homecookin....in other words, they're usually under or over cooked by a very large lady in a white smock, who sounds exactly like the dinner lady at my old school and most desserts come with lumpy custard.

If attending a training session, or council organised seminar a buffet is usually provided.

[Clodfobble]

Every place I have ever worked provided free coffee. I don't drink coffee, but I'm told that in all the places it was crappy and in one place several people joined together into a little paid co-op to purchase better coffee for themselves.

In addition, the pawnshop IT department and the videogame company provided subsidized sodas (25 cents each), the construction company where I temped for awhile provided a wide array of free drinks and snacks, the educational software company provided subsidized sodas and catered lunch once a month...

but my husband's current employer provides an obscene smorgasbord of free food, including milk/cereal, microwaveable meals, fruit, and a freaking convenience store's worth of snack foods. They're living large over there.