We are pleased to present the latest edition of the ILLN Newsletter. This issue focuses on bonus policies, examining how employers structure, implement and modify bonus and other variable remuneration schemes, and the extent to which such payments are discretionary or give rise to enforceable entitlements, as applied across selected EU member states, Switzerland and the UK.

While the legal frameworks, the weight given to discretion clauses and the consequences of withholding or altering bonuses vary considerably between jurisdictions, a common thread runs through each contribution: the need to strike a proportionate balance between the employer’s legitimate interest in flexible, performance-linked reward structures and the employee’s right not to be denied payments that have, in substance, become part of the agreed terms of employment.

This cross-jurisdictional overview highlights both shared principles and key differences in how bonus policies are regulated and enforced across Europe.