DESPITE A?DOWNTURN in business, a number of private sector companies managed to pay Christmas bonuses, though smaller than in the past.
Richard Cozier, managing director of Banks Holdings Limited, told BARBADOS BUSINESS AUTHORITY, “What we have is a performance appraisal or performance management scheme that portions a percentage of profits to employees.
“Then there is a formula to determine how much each individual gets and so on. This year, obviously, we were down on last year’s performance.”
ANSA?McAL (Barbados) Limited was able to pay an annual dividend based on a set formula that considers company performance and individuals’ appraisals.
“Based on that, yes, we paid bonus,” Human Resource director Roglyn Hinds said. “Not all companies can pay a bonus because it depends on how they performed during the year.
“But once they have performed within reason, then yes, because we have a set formula.”
Company performance was also the yardstick used by The Nation Corporation. Group financial controller Noel Wood said, “Compared to other years, it was substantially reduced because our performance was reduced.
“It was done because we met the minimum benchmark. If we did not meet the minimum benchmark, it would not have been paid.”
The Barbados Employers’ Confederation revealed that the majority of member companies did not pay bonuses for 2010.
The confederation’s industrial relations officer, Siobhan Robinson-Morris, said those who paid had looked at the company’s performance and tried to reward employees for putting in extra effort and going the extra mile to make sure that the company was profitable.
For some companies, bonus payments were part of their collective agreements.
Robinson-Morris said other companies opted out of paying bonuses. “These are the ones of course who are not bound. When they look at their finances and so on, they think it better to forego the bonus . . . and see how they come out of the recession.”