Hanoi (VNA) - This year’s year-end bonusesat enterprises nationwide are expected to be higher than last year.

The average bonus is expected to be higher than the usual one month’s salary, arepresentative from the Institute for Workers and Trade Unions under theVietnam General Confederation of Labour told Thoi bao Kinh doanh.

Deputy Labour Minister Doan Mau Diep said that except forareas affected by natural disasters, this year’s bonus would not be lower thanlast year, since 2017 was a prosperous year for businesses.

However, there are exceptions. Unable to affordtransport fees to go home for Tet (Lunar New Year), Tran Dinh Nhat and his wifeNguyen Thi Lien, workers at a private textile company based in Binh Duong province,have decided to stay in the province for the holiday.

“We were able to save only a few million dong eachmonth, so we have decided not to go home to save costs,” Lien told Ha Noi Moi(New Hanoi) newspaper.

To help out, their company has offered to help them with somefinancial support. In addition, for his outstanding performance in the pastyear, Nhat received a 32-inch TV from the company.

Several enterprises in Vietnam have offered promisingyear-end bonuses and benefit packages to retain employees after the Tetholiday.

The Huong Long Ltd Company in Bac Thang Long Industrial Park,offers junior employees (those with one to three years’ experience) bonusesbased on their salary coefficients, 1.2 times higher for middle-level employees(with three to five years’ experience) and twice as much for seniors (from fiveyears’ experience), said Nguyen Van Canh, chairman of the company’s labourunion.

The company will also provide cars to take employees backhome for Tet and pick them up after the holidays, he said.

Labour unions in different provinces and cities are alsodetermined to ensure a good Tet for workers. Kieu Ngoc Vu, Vice Chairman of theHCM City Labour Federation, said that it would organise new-year gatherings forlow-income workers who remained in the city for the holiday.

“We will provide 37,000 train and bus tickets for those whowish to go home, and give 500,000 VND (22 USD) to each worker who has losttheir job in the past year,” he said.

The labour union in the southern province of Dong Nai said itexpected to hand out 2,000 subsidised packages (500,000 VND each) and 500 bustickets. The Binh Duong labour union said it would give free tickets to 3,800workers, as well as tracking down enterprises having debts or going bankrupt toensure their employees got paid before the holiday.  

Year-end bonuses and benefits are the make-or-break factorsthat determine employees’ loyalty, a recently published survey has shown.

The survey, conducted by the human resources Navigos Group,reviewed the 2017 year-end bonuses and benefits for 1,800 employees and 400human resources specialists.

In one of its questions, the survey proposed a hypotheticalscenario of “receiving no bonus this year” and asked for reactions from theemployees. About 25 percent said they would leave their jobs and seek othercompanies with better benefits, 40 other said they would raise concerns andrequest bonuses.

About 13.7 percent said they would be disappointed, but wouldnot react due to the difficulties of finding new jobs. Only 6.9 percentresponded that they did not care about year-end bonuses because their incomeswere enough for the holiday.

Employers, when asked if they would offer employees bonusesif their companies had an unprofitable year, 80 percent said they would.

This shows that employers are aware of how labour shortagesafter Tet could affect production, a Navigos Group representative told Thoibao Kinh doanh (Business Times) newspaper.-VNA