Tet bonuses are incentive for staff to work harder
| YOUR SAY
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Last week Viet Nam News asked our readers about the disparities that exist in the of the Tet bonus in Viet Nam. Is the situation fair? The following are some of the comments we received.
Nguyen Kim Trieu, Vietnamese, Ha Noi:
I think the Tet bonus is very important because it helps Vietnamese people enjoy the most important festival of the year. The bonus gives employers the chance to express how much they appreciate the work of their staff. I’m sure that the prospect of getting a bonus motivates staff to work harder, too. I think employees should get at least one additional month’s pay for Tet because we all work very hard. I think it is normal for people to be paid according to their job responsibilities and experience. Consequently, some get a bigger bonus than others at the end of the year. But what matters is that everybody gets something, even if it’s very little. But it’s hard for me to believe that somebody should get just VND30,000.
Franziska Tucci, German, Ha Noi
In my opinion, the gap between the lowest and the highest Tet bonuses is quite extreme, but I guess it depends a lot on the of the person’s monthly salary. So if you earn very little, even a very small bonus can have quite a noticeable effect on your income. But the Tet bonus should be fair and therefore regulated by the law. Either it should be the same amount of money for everybody or people should get the same proportion of their annual salary for Tet. So for example, one additional month’s salary for everybody. Vietnamese people work very hard but normally earn very little. That’s why I believe that the Tet bonus is a good thing. I think that this kind of gesture motivates people to work, too. Some people get a similar type of bonus in Germany for Christmas. I don’t get a bonus myself because it’s not in my contract.
Hugo Genin, French, Ha Noi
It’s difficult to have a clear idea about these bonuses and why there is such a big difference between the highest and the lowest. So we have to ask ourselves what differences are between the various employers. How do the jobs differ? How many people are working for them?
We have this in my country, France. We call it the “13th month”. People receive it at the end of December before Christmas. But it is not the same for all companies. Some companies don’t have enough money to give a Christmas bonus. Sometimes the director is not in favour of it or it’s not the company’s policy. Civil servants receive the bonus and it is more structured for them. The bonus which is given depends on the monthly salary or on the company’s business performance. I guess it’s the same in Viet Nam. It’s important to give a bonus for Christmas or the New Year because it is expensive buying presents for family and friends.
Tim Russell, British, HCM City
A bonus is a reward given to deserving employees for loyal service or excellent performance. It is a privilege, not a right. Sadly, Tet bonuses are seen by Vietnamese employees as an entitlement rather than something that they have to earn, which puts employers under considerable pressure to pay out bonuses across the board. The fact that Vietnamese employees openly discuss the of their bonuses puts additional pressure on employers to pay everyone the same amount.
Tet is a considerable headache for people who run their own businesses. As well as being practically obliged to pay bonuses, even to staff who have done nothing to deserve them, we are expected to close our offices for up to a week (meaning we end up working ourselves to deal with incoming business). Contrary to what the Vietnamese may believe, the rest of the world does not stop for Tet, And then, when we reopen, we have to deal with excuses from staff who haven’t turned up for work or we need to recruit new employees to replace those who haven’t bothered to come back because they have had their bonuses.
In the West, we celebrate Christmas, but even then most offices only close on December 25 and 26. Some close for an additional day on December 24. Staff who wish to take longer holidays must use their annual leave allowance. And bonuses are discretionary, based both on the performance of the company over the year and on the individual’s performance.
Local staff who have the good fortune to work for international companies need to meet their employers halfway and accept that an international-standard work environment means they have to adapt to international working practices.
Ryu Hashimoto, Japanese, Binh Duong
I think Tet is the most important event of the year in Viet Nam, so Tet bonuses should also be considered an important issue for enterprises. I have already made a final decision on the of the Tet bonus this year and explained to all employees, as I’m the human resources manager in our company, that it’s not important how much they receive. However, it is a reward for their effort. They all understand that.
In our company, at least a one-month bonus is guaranteed and individual assessment is considered on top of that. The average bonus is 1.3 to 1.4 times the monthly salary. I have refused to pay an additional individual assessment this Tet because business has not improved as we expected.
The gap between the highest and lowest bonuses is incredible and quite unfair, I think. It’s difficult to keep employees motivated, especially as foreign enterprises pay higher bonus levels. They should consider the effect this has on other enterprises.
The Tet bonus doesn’t affect my performance. However, I think the bonus should be as high as possible to keep employees motivated.
Nguyen Thuy Huong, Vietnamese, Ha Noi.
I don’t know about other people and other companies but as far as my colleagues and I am concerned, the bonus is really something worth waiting for. After a whole year working like a buffalo, the bonus is something to look forward to and keeps me motivated.
When November comes, gossip about the of the bonus is rife.
In my company, the assessment system is very clear. Each person’s performance is reviewed and evaluated fairly. It might be below, at, or above the average level depending on what you have contributed to the company throughout the year. This will affect each person’s bonus. As everyone earns a different salary, so the bonus will be different as well. The bonus level also varies from year to year depending on the company’s performance.
The difference in the of the bonus can be huge. However, we cannot come to form a conclusion just on that. If the lowest bonus is VND30,000 and the highest is VND100,000, there is no problem. If however the highest is as much as VND389 million, that clearly isn’t fair. — VNS