Tis the season to be jolly, and a lot of jolly comes from that 13 Cheque, that allows people to buy above their ordinary month’s expenses.
So how exactly for the Bonus get calculated?
There are several models that Companies adopt to determine the Employees eligibility for a Bonus.
First off, the law does not force a Company to pay a Bonus, this does get a little tricky, because certain Bargaining Councils such as the Metal Industries Bargaining Council, makes provision of a Leave Enhancement Pay, which effectively is a bonus.
So just have a look see at what your Bargaining Council Main Agreement has to say, and honestly rather phone in to the Bargaining Council, because reading an entire Main Agreement will be the saddest act to perform before Christmas.
As mentioned, the Law does not force Companies to pay a bonus, however some interesting Case law does exist where Employers were forced to pay out a Bonus for one of two reason’s:
1: The Employer had paid out bonuses for several years prior, and without any notification to the staff, ceased to pay the Bonus.
2: The Employer wrote into their contract that a Bonus will be paid.
The 13th Cheque is becoming a contentious topic around Managers tables as the perception by the majority of Employees is that the Bonus must be paid, and the Company has failed the Employee should a Bonus not be paid.
The result of this perception is that Employers are turning towards Bonuses based on Performance.
This can be calculated in many ways, from an Individuals performance, to the Teams Performance, to the Company’s Performance.
There are formulas that look at all three even, where the Employees bonus is divided into the three sections.
Naturally, to successfully remunerate an Employee based on Performance, an accurate KPI (Key Performance Indicator), must be used, and the Employee must be made aware of their Performance at each grading, in this way the Employees expectations of a Full or Partial Bonus are managed.
All Employers would like to issue a Bonus, it makes them a desirable Employer, and it gives people that extra for the Festive Season, however the bottom line always wins.
Amore Legere
Konrad Bryczkowski