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The Bradshaw Hollingsworth News Area will provide legal comment and updates about issues affecting businesses and consumers. If you have any suggestions or comments on the news articles, or would like our help dealing with a legal problem, please contact us on mail@bhlaw.co.uk.

Employment Law Update - Discretionary Bonuses

At Bradshaw Hollingsworth Solicitors, we are often asked by employers and employees about bonus schemes and whether they can be discretionary. The answer is "Yes it can" but the terms of the bonus scheme need to be drafted carefully because the Employment Tribunal will look very carefully at the wording and all aspects of the scheme in deciding whether a scheme is truely "discretionary".

This has been reaffirmed in the recent decision of Small and Others -v- Boots Company Plc and Other by the Employment Appeal Tribunal. The label "discretionary" does not prevent the scheme having contractual status. It is about the substance of the scheme rather than the label.

It is necessary to look at all aspects of the scheme to decide if the scheme is truely a "discretionary" scheme.

It is important when drafting a bonus scheme to ensure that the correct wording is used, and if the scheme is intended to be entirely at the discretion of the employer, to draft it in that way.

"At Bradshaw Hollingsworth Solicitors, we can help you draft all your employment documentation from contracts to bonus schemes, policies to procedures."

If you would like assistance in drafting a bonus scheme or interpreting your bonus scheme, or on any other employment law documents, please contact Robin Bradshaw at Bradshaw Hollingsworth Solicitors on 0116 204 2500 or by email at robin.bradshaw@bhlaw.co.uk

Bradshaw Hollingsworth provide specialist legal advice in the areas of Employment Law, Litigation, Commercial, Insolvency, Debt Recovery, Wills & Probate and Property, including residential conveyancing, house sales, house purchases and re-mortgages. For more information about our services please contact Greg Hollingsworth of Bradshaw Hollingsworth Solicitors, 19 New Walk, Leicester on 0116 204 2500 or by email at greg.hollingsworth@bhlaw.co.uk.

Partners: Robin Bradshaw and Greg Hollingsworth - Bradshaw Hollingsworth is regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.