* Survey shows most U.S. companies not giving holiday bonuses this season
A recent survey from Hewitt Associates finds that most U.S. companies will not award their employees a holiday bonus this season. However, performance-based incentives are a rising reward.
“Variable pay is designed to help employees concentrate on company goals and objectives, while eliminating ‘entitlement’ issues that often arise with a holiday bonus,” says Ken Abosch, a business leader for Hewitt Associates.
The HR services firm’s 2004’s study shows that 37% of companies offer some form of holiday bonus, while 63% do not. Here is a look at some of the survey results:
* Of those companies providing holiday bonuses, 85% budgeted less than 1% of payroll expenses for these rewards, and 9% budgeted between 1% and 2% of payroll.
* Nearly half of the firms that offer holiday bonuses do so in the form of retailer gift certificates, 37% will give cash, and 21% will give food gifts such as a turkey or ham. Reasons for offering holiday bonuses are to show appreciation and thank employees (54%), maintain tradition (24%) and boost morale (17%).
* A full 16% of companies have discontinued previous holiday bonus programs. Reasons included cost (65%) entitlement issues (37%) and the development of pay-for-performance programs (28%).
* Of those companies that never offered staff a holiday bonus, respondents said this was due to cost (40%), because they never considered such a program (30%) and attributed such a program as being inconsistent with their reward philosophy (21%).
