Prorate a bonus for an employee who joined, left or took leave during the bonus period.
Prorated bonus = full bonus × eligible days ÷ days in period.
A shift lead hired on June 15 is eligible for 200 of 365 days of a $3,000 annual bonus plan. The prorated bonus is $1,643.84.
Proration is a policy choice. Write down how you prorate (days, months or hours) and apply it the same way to everyone.
How leave affects bonuses can be restricted by law for protected leave. Check before reducing a bonus for leave.
A quarterly service bonus of $750 covers a 91-day quarter. A technician transferred into the eligible team on day 29, giving 63 eligible days. The eligible share is 69.2%, so the prorated bonus is $519.23.
The prorated bonus is the full amount times eligible days over period days, and eligible days above the period length are capped, so it never exceeds the full bonus. It does not match plans that prorate by months or pay periods, which give slightly different amounts than days. Plan rules on leave, performance gates and payout dates come first; the calculator only handles the time share.
A nondiscretionary bonus, one promised in advance for attendance, output or staying through a date, is part of the regular rate under the FLSA. When it covers more than one week, 29 CFR 778.209 requires you to spread it over the weeks it was earned and pay extra overtime for any week with overtime hours.
| Step | Figure |
|---|---|
| Prorated quarterly bonus | $650 |
| Spread over 13 weeks | $50 a week |
| A week with 46 hours | $50 ÷ 46 = $1.087 an hour |
| Extra half-time on 6 overtime hours | 6 × $0.5435 = $3.26 |
Repeat for every overtime week in the period. The amount is small per week, but missing it across a team is a common audit finding. Exempt staff are not affected.
Either, if your policy says which.
Depends on the leave type and law.
Nondiscretionary bonuses usually affect the regular rate.
Yes.
Proration by days handles time in the plan, not hours worked. If your plan also scales by schedule, multiply the prorated bonus by the person’s share of a full week, such as 0.6 for 24 hours out of 40.
Use calendar days in both fields unless the plan says working days. Mixing them, such as eligible working days over calendar days in the period, shrinks the bonus sharply.
A true gift that is not tied to hours, output or a promise is generally discretionary and excluded. A bonus employees expect from a set formula is not.
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