Am I entitled to bonus?

[YellsiBabs]

I started a job end of Nov and when I accepted I was issued with a contract or employment and a bonus offer letter of which I had to sign and return.

The bonus is paid out in March and the employee handbook says to qualify you must be employed in the financial year of the bonus.

Would you consider this as I am entitled and will be recieving it?

I know bonuses are at each companies discretion and they’ll all have their own policies etc. The only real way to find out at this tags is to ask but j would rather just wait and see (and hope!)

Thanks

When is the financial year end? If it is end of December then theoretically you qualify for a month's worth but anywhere I have worked you wouldn't receive anything as it depends on individual contribution as well as overall company performance and you hadn't been around long enough for that to be assessed. Does the offer letter not specify criteria?

Which financial year? You may not qualify if on probation or at best prorata to the time you actually worked during the relevant year. Most bonuses are discretionary and performance based. Have you had any performance reviews?

Surely you have only been employed for part of the financial year though? I’d be surprised if you qualify.

I’ve always had a pro-ratad bonus in that situation

You could ask HR to clarify, they wouldn’t mind

Thanks for the responses. The letter only stipulates you must be employed during the financial year that the bonus relates to.

I did wonder if maybe it would be prorated for just the months since I started there.

If anything would be pro rata

I’ve also always had a pro rated bonus in that scenario. My current job I started 1 February a few years ago, our financial year ends on the last day of April. For that first year I received the bonus (a portion of profits shared not individual contribution) but I received a quarter of what I would have done if I’d been there the whole year.

If your financial year ends on 31/12 you'd normally be entitled to 1/12 (or 2/12 if you started right at the beginning of November) of the bonus