Please help! Should I be denied a bonus?

[J3ssicaJones]

I have return to work after a year of mat.leave. I have been back in the office since November. I was informed by my manager that I will not be getting a bonus as I haven't been at work.
I have spoken to other mums, in different departments and they have received a bonus.
I spoke to my HR rep, who stated it is probably due to the time of year that I returned. As January is the cut off.

Is this fair?

It kind of depends! What is the bonus for (is it written down anywhere what you have to do to earn a bonus)? What proportion of people get it generally? What has happened in past years?

It probably depends on your contract. I had a bonus on my first mat leave it only a pro-rated one on my second because they changed the terms in between. HR should be able to advise what the rules are and how they’ve been applied to your situation.

Bonuses generally reflect what work you have done. You haven't done any, so why would you get a bonue?

The answer is "it depends" this is quite useful

Bonuses are usually discretionary, so yes in theory they can deny you one if so. Sometimes it is prorated based on your actual working time during the bonus period.

Thank you

It depends on the bonus scheme, but you haven’t been in Work for year so what do you think you should be paid a bonus for?

The bonus is usually given to all employees. I was back in the office in November, so thought I may get a small bonus if it was pro rata.

The bonus is usually issued to all staff. It is pro rata. Based on an appraisal, which was completed and very good.

Did HR explain what they mean about the January cut off given that you returned in November?

Are the bonus scheme rules documented anywhere?

The HR rep has said he will investigate the issue.
He seemed to think that I had returned to work too late to be considered. But my team leader double checked with HR that I would still be considered as long as my appraisal was completed, which they confirmed.

In the staff handbook, it does stated that no monies ( salary or bonus) should be withheld if the employee is on maternity leave.

Sounds like you have quite a god case for getting it then OP. However, I've had HR people tell me there's a special unwritten rule, which they always apply consistently to be fair (resulting in me missing out financially..) - and think its fine to make up exceptions to the written rules like that! If they are stubborn, you may have to weigh up whether its worth the fight :-/

A good case, not a 'god' case!

Thank you for your help and advice. I wasn't sure if it was worth pursuing....

A bonus is just that.. a ‘bonus’ if you’ve not been there why are you entitled to anything?

It's based on appraisal performance which was v. good. As mentioned before I have spoken to various mums who have all confirmed they received a bonus.

It's depends on how bonus is paid, but you say everyone in the company gets one, so on the assumption it isn't sales related driven.

Without knowing the full extent, the question is, would you have received a bonus had you not been on maternity leave?

If yes, you should get a bonus.

I think of it in terms of Equality - men don't have the dilemma and physical demands of childbearing and post birth involvement, that takes them away from the workplace so they can always enjoy a bonus if it is available to all staff and not sales targets driven for example.

In your case OP, you have needed to take time away, but came back in Nov and received a good appraisal for the time you were at work, therefore you shouldn't have to lose out due to your Mat Leave.

Clearly it needs to be commensurate and fairly distributed compared with other colleagues who were in work. It's likely the organisation reserve some of their bonus pot to be able to reward employees like you on Mat Leave.

Seen the approach that performance rating for bonus is assumed to be in line with last one given before mat leave (if not enough time in business during performance year / after mat leave to make an assessment). If that rating wd deliver a bonus, employee gets a bonus.

Yes I would of recieved one if I hadn't gone on marernity leave. That was the only reason my manager could give me for not giving me a bonus.

I git mine both times on mat leave, as it was calculated on the previous year's financial performance. Do you not have a staff handbook?

Check your contract - they are generally discretionary.

I checked the handbook which stated that renumerations I.e salary and bonus should not be withheld if on mat leave. But it doesn't mention needing to return to work before a specific date to be considered for bonus. My HR rep did say it could of been a differnt outcome, if I had returned to work earlier or if I had taken mat leave at a different time of year.

They may have recieved a bonus because they were working for more than a couple of weeks in the relevant year. If its based o appraisal and you weren't there all year you can';t be appraised, because you haven't done anything.

Am I being penalized for taking my annual leave at the end of my mat. Leave?