The Christmas bonus is one of the benefits that generate the greatest impact on companies, and as we are in the last months of the year, herein we share the aspects to be considered for its payment.
In accordance with Article 87 of the Federal Labor Law, employees are entitled to the payment of at least 15 days of salary before December 20 as a Christmas bonus; however, in its second paragraph, it is stated that those employees who have not completed the full year of service will be paid proportionally.
In accordance with the interpretation given by the Supreme Court to such article, in the event that an employee does not attend work during the course of the year for any of the following reasons, the corresponding days of non-attendance must be deducted for the payment of the Christmas bonus:
- Periods of incapacity that are not due to an accident or occupational hazard.
- Unjustified absences
- Justified absences due to permits or leaves of absence.
- Suspension of the labor relationship for the reasons outlined in article 42 of the Federal Labor Law.
Therefore, absences due to the following reasons must be considered for payment of Christmas bonus:
- Periods of incapacity due to an accident or occupational hazard.
- Periods of maternity and paternity leave.
- Mandatory rest days
- Days corresponding to weekly rest
- Vacations
Likewise, it is important to consider that in those cases in which it has been agreed that the employee will work a reduced workweek, meaning, less than 6 working days per week, only the days actually worked and their proportion to the mandatory rest day will be taken into account for calculating the payment of the Christmas bonus.
As a result of the above, it is essential that when calculating the payment of the Christmas bonus, the aforementioned concepts are taken into account, since the amount resulting from such benefit, in accordance with article 27 of the Social Security Law, will become part of the employee’s salary registered before the Mexican Institute of Social Security, and consequently, part of the integrated daily salary.
The payment of the Christmas bonus must be made based on the employee’s base daily salary and with the purpose of defining the amount to be paid, therefore, the following is the formula to be followed to make the payment of the Christmas bonus.
15 days of salary ÷ 365 = Daily Christmas bonus payment (CDA) (CDA)
CDA x Days effectively worked = Amount of Christmas bonus to be paid.
Finally, it should be noted that there is currently a proposal to reform the Federal Labor Law, which intends to increase to at least 30 days of salary for the payment of Christmas bonus, however, this is still under discussion, so the current text, which indicates at least the payment of 15 days of salary for this benefit, should continue to be considered.
In case you require support to identify the correct way to calculate the payment of the Christmas bonus, the team of the Labor Area of Vega, Guerrero & Asociados is at your disposal.
