Bonus discussion

[Jaska]

Hi all,

Somewhat strange situation at a company I used to work at, trying to see if I can help them out. Have simplified below to make it easier to read

Aaron joins company A in 2012. He has a generous bonus scheme (Contractual but loosely defined) and enjoys payouts of 10%+ for 4 years

Company A merges with company B, and TUPE applies to the whole office. 2016 bonus is kept with the old targets and systems and a payout of 10%+ occurs

2017 bonus is now under company B rules and pays out 0% as all targets are 'missed'

Is this simply just unethical behaviour and all the Aarons are screwed and should look elsewhere?

[Jaska]

Contract reads 'bonus is paid yearly, 10% paid at target, bonus range 0-15%'

[Jaska]

I totally agree with you, it was previously defined by company revenue and profit, and still is now. A 'bonus committee' decides the targets. Just seems the goalposts have moved from easily achievable to unachievable as now company B are deciding the target is much higher. (company B bonuses are historically in the range of 0-2%)

Edit - to clarify what I'm originally asking, is there any reason to suggest that previous bonus payouts under company A should affect bonus payouts at company B, if the targets are not contractually defined?

[Jaska]

Thanks all, good feedback and along the lines with what I thought. As you say simply harsh but not out of line with what they can do. I am glad I left the place when I did!

[Jaska]

0000 said:

I'm a bit confused.

Is it that the targets for a year in advance are set beyond what the Aarons are capable of achieving, or that during the relevant year the target set at the start of the year has changed?

Just to give additional info here as this is somewhat relevant, it's actually neither! They didn't tell the staff the target, then at the end of the year told all staff the targets have not been reached and no bonus was payable. They have not disclosed the target revenue, or the actual achieved revenue. Just have to take it at face value that the board of directors are giving the right information.