How much should you give to the office whip-round? - BBC News

Office whip-rounds are a staple of working life but they can raise a lot of awkward questions.

Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Office collections for colleagues are a tradition but can raise awkward questions

Love them, hate them or barely know them, it's a colleague's birthday, wedding or leaving do and there's a collection to mark the occasion.

So how much should you give? And if you're the person organising the collection, how do you chase without feeling like a loan shark or exposing unspoken team dynamics?

The politics of the office whip-round are so sensitive that everyone the BBC spoke to asked us not to use their real name.

For those on a tight budget, the rule is simple: only give to colleagues you've worked with directly.