Bonuses can increase worker pay according to their seniority or their job performance. They can help motivate workers to do the best job possible for their employees. Many businesses use bonuses offered as part of the unemployment contract or a company-wide project aimed at increasing worker motivation to improve job performance and employee retention.
Businesses that promise workers bonuses in specific circumstances through contracts or company-wide programs generally need to uphold those financial promises to their workers. Employees denied contractual bonuses may have grounds to take legal action against their employers.
Bonuses can be part of a worker’s pay
Federal wage regulations break bonuses into two categories. Discretionary bonuses are a form of goodwill offered by companies when they are profitable. They may give workers an extra check around the holidays or after a particularly profitable quarter. Those bonuses depend on the voluntary generosity of the business.
Bonuses included in contracts or offered in writing as part of a company-wide program are generally nondiscretionary bonuses. Employers have a legal obligation to fulfill the promises they made to their workers if the employees meet the standards outlined in the contract or the bonus program. When employers wrongfully try to deny people pay they have already earned, workers may have the right to file wage and hour lawsuits.
Taking appropriate legal action can force employers to uphold their promises and provide workers with the pay they have already earned. An attorney can help a frustrated worker denied a bonus evaluate the situation to determine if they have grounds for a wage and hour claim.