Real Life Signing Bonus

[KWhit]

I have a question for you guys. At work, I have been offered a promotion (and a raise - woo-hoo) and one of the things offered was a signing bonus.

I have never had experience with signing bonuses before. I am going to talk with my boss about this, but I'd like some general info first (so I don't sound like an idiot when I talk to him). I assume they will want me to sign some sort of document agreeing not to leave the company for a period of time (hence the term "signing" bonus).

Is this typically the way it goes? What happens if I want to leave the job before that amount of time is up?

Thanks for the help!

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by KWhit

I have a question for you guys. At work, I have been offered a promotion (and a raise - woo-hoo) and one of the things offered was a signing bonus.

I have never had experience with signing bonuses before. I am going to talk with my boss about this, but I'd like some general info first (so I don't sound like an idiot when I talk to him). I assume they will want me to sign some sort of document agreeing not to leave the company for a period of time (hence the term "signing" bonus).

Is this typically the way it goes? What happens if I want to leave the job before that amount of time is up?

Thanks for the help!

Typically your signing bonus will be averaged out for the length of your contract for your company's salary cap. It's the only part of your salary that is guaranteed, so make sure it's significant.

Ok. It had to be said.

Now, for real stuff. I would look at the contract. They may want you to sign something that says you will stay for a certain period of time, but I am not sure how frequent it is. If there is nothing in the contract you sign (or if you don't sign anything at all), then there is nothing they can do. The bonus is yours. If there is something about it in the contract the wording should be pretty specific about what happens to part or all of the bonus if you are to quit before X date of signing the agreement. That seems to make sense to me.

[JAG]

I've had one experience with a signing bonus. For myself, it was good as long as we stayed with the company for 90 days. After 90 days, it was given in addition to our regular bi-weekly salary payment. So my experience was not like the NFL in that you get it after you sign on the dotted line, but unless something happens and you leave your job shortly after you begin, you will see the signing bonus.

Hope that helps. Congrats by the way.

[Franklinnoble]

Originally Posted by KWhit

I have a question for you guys. At work, I have been offered a promotion (and a raise - woo-hoo) and one of the things offered was a signing bonus.

I have never had experience with signing bonuses before. I am going to talk with my boss about this, but I'd like some general info first (so I don't sound like an idiot when I talk to him). I assume they will want me to sign some sort of document agreeing not to leave the company for a period of time (hence the term "signing" bonus).

Is this typically the way it goes? What happens if I want to leave the job before that amount of time is up?

Thanks for the help!

It sounds like you're getting the bonus as part of the promotion package. I would simply ask what the terms of the bonus are - I would be surprised if it's anything more than a 1 year commitment, but that would really depend on the amount of the bonus. It's generally good practice to make sure that you'll like your new job (and your new salary) enough to stick around that long without the bonus being a consideration.

If you were to leave the job prior to the end of the term defined in the bonus, you may be responsible for returning a portion of the money - however, in my limited experience, I've left a job after getting a bonus, and they never bothered me about it. Obviously, if the severence is initiated by the employer, the money is yours.

[VPI97]

Every signing bonus I've received has been with a one year money back guarentee. I got the bonus on day one, but if I would have left the company within the first year, I would have had to pay back a prorated portion of the bonus.

[Mustang]

The signing bonus I received, I received 50% up front and 50% after 6 months . . .

[bryce]

in my experience, i got it all up front, but if you left within one year, they took all of it back on your last paycheck, and if you left between 1 and 2 years, they took half of it back, so you had to stay two years to have it all vest and not worry about losing any of it.

[KWhit]

Originally Posted by VPI97

Every signing bonus I've received has been with a one year money back guarentee. I got the bonus on day one, but if I would have left the company within the first year, I would have had to pay back a prorated portion of the bonus.

But that was all spelled out in a document that you signed, correct?

[Eaglesfan27]

Of course it can vary by contract, but my signing bonus stipulated that I had to stay with the company for 1 year. If I choose to leave early, I have to pay it back with interest! This wasn't a big deal, as it was a nice bonus and I had no intention of leaving.

[VPI97]

Originally Posted by KWhit

But that was all spelled out in a document that you signed, correct?

Yep, that document was one that I signed along with the accepted offer sheet.

[rkmsuf]

If there was a mention of a private bathroom I'd jump all over it.

[KWhit]

No private bathroom, but a pretty sweet office.

[Franklinnoble]

Originally Posted by KWhit

No private bathroom, but a pretty sweet orifice.

[Easy Mac]

Originally Posted by KWhit

No private bathroom, but a pretty sweet office.

is there a difference?

[Poli]

I got 35k from the Navy, half up front, the rest split through the remaining six years. I have to repay a prorated amount if I leave early.

[GrantDawg]

Ah, benefits. That must be nice.


(ps. We still playing tennis Thursday?)

[Tekneek]

Very interesting...

If you read the details and don't understand it, but are concerned that you may get stuck in something, I'd let an attorney review it.

I've developed a habit of running everything past my attorney before I sign something that is related to my job (ie, any new "code" the executives have just whipped up, any new disclosure agreements, etc). I don't want to get caught with my pants down if something bad goes down. I want to know where I stand from the very beginning, and on more than one occasion the explanation provided by management was not found to be completely accurate upon independent review.