Many professionals look forward to the holidays or the end of the financial quarter. That is when they might be eligible for a bonus. Bonuses can augment an individual’s base wages. When companies are profitable and employees are productive, bonuses can be a way of sharing good fortune with those who help the company succeed.
Occasionally, those expecting to receive a bonus hear disappointing news from their employers. They learn that the company does not intend to provide the bonus they receive each year or every profitable quarter. Do workers have rights when an employer does not provide them with their usual bonus?
Some bonuses are mandatory
Many people think of bonuses as extra pay and therefore think they are voluntary. However, only some bonuses are truly voluntary. Companies that share good fortune with their workers can do so at their own discretion.
If the business included bonuses in employment contracts or in efforts to motivate workers to perform for the company, those bonuses become part of the worker’s promised compensation package. Bonuses promised to workers as a performance bonus may be part of the worker’s standard pay.
Non-discretionary bonuses are wages that companies must provide if the circumstances meet the criteria established in a bonus program or an employment contract. Failing to do so may constitute a violation of worker wage rights or a contract breach.
Employees who have not received bonuses and whose employers have affirmed they do not intend to pay them may need to review emails that discussed motivational bonuses or a contract that outlines bonus pay provisions with the assistance of a legal professional. When employers do not uphold their contracts or other promises to employees, workers may have grounds for a wage and hour lawsuit.