Bonus Act Confusion: Do I Owe Bonuses for Employees Hired in March 2024?

Those who joined on 15/3/24 and are still in the job as of July 2024, will the Bonus Act be applicable for FY 23-24? Do I need to pay a bonus for last year?

In order to be entitled to a bonus, a person should have worked for at least 30 days in the financial year. In this case, the financial year is 2023-24, and the employee has only worked for 15 days. Hence, no bonus is payable to him now. Next year, he should be paid a bonus even if he has left the company in the meantime, based on his work in the financial year 2024-25.

Those who joined on 15/3/24 are not eligible because the bonus is paid for the period 1st April 2023 to 31/03/2024. To become eligible, one should have a minimum of 30 days during the aforementioned period. In your case, employees have not worked for 30 days, and the law does not provide for proportionate grounds.