The spirit is Scrooge is alive and in many modern day workplaces, according to the TUC.

Tales of Dickensian-style bosses have flooded into the TUC after an appeal to employees to spill the beans on their less than generous bosses.

Examples include employers who forced staff who would normally be in work on the day on which Christmas Day falls, either to lose pay or make up the time at a later date.

Equally common were employers who made staff use their statutory annual leave to cover the days off over the festive break.

TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said: "Christmas should be the time when bosses show a bit of gratitude for all the hard work their staff put in all year round and spread some Christmas cheer around their workplaces. But sadly this show of goodwill is beyond a minority of employers."

Examples of Christmas meanness emailed to the TUC last Christmas included:

• Turning the heating off to save money when only a skeleton staff are working over the Christmas break.


• Forcing staff who are usually at work the day that Christmas or New Year's Day falls to make up the time or lose a day's pay.


• Counting the Christmas bank holidays as part of their employees' four weeks of statutory leave.


• Threatening staff who take a day off ill with the loss of their Christmas bonus.


• Refusing to allow Christmas decorations to go up, cancelling the office party and not allowing staff any time to attend the office Christmas lunch.


• Only paying staff at work on the Christmas bank holiday the same hourly rate that they earn the rest of the year.


• Shredding Christmas cards sent to staff and taking home any presents received for themselves.


• Giving presents to permanent employees but nothing to long-serving agency workers.