Dear all

I am being given conflicting information and wondered if anyone could set the record straight for me.

I work as the only HR admin person in my company and recently, as the company isn’t doing too badly in this climate, the owner decided to give everyone a surprise bonus to help ease pressure of costs going up. This was given to everyone except two people in customer services who have handed in their notice. These people came to me furious as they hadn’t been given the bonus cheque shouting that they should get it as everyone else had and it was unfair treatment and they were being discriminated against for leaving.

I thought that we didn’t need to give it to them as they are leaving and even though everyone else had a cheque, it was discretionary and isn’t in the contract or anything. /someone told me we were wrong and now I’m worried that we have accidentally done something illegal and I don’t know if I should ask the owner to pay them the money.

Please help!

Birgita