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Analysis Tip: Make Educated Decisions on Nondiscretionary Bonuses

Analysis Tip: Make Educated Decisions on Nondiscretionary Bonuses

According to the FLSA, nondiscretionary bonuses belong in the regular rate, spread out over the weeks the bonus was intended to cover. Although this will always increase a worker’s regular rate, counsel often leave bonuses out of damage models because working them in correctly can be challenging.


The frequency of bonus payments can be intermittent, and it almost never matches up nicely with the regular pay period. I have worked cases where employees were paid biweekly while their bonuses were paid semimonthly, and the damages had to be calculated weekly. Ultimately, bonus payments and payroll payments must be broken out daily and then recombined into weekly totals.


Fair Value Metrics has over a decade of experience creating damage models that simplify complex calculations for your team. And since any member of your team can easily modify our damage models, you will be able to determine the role bonuses play in your damage calculation. However you use the information, you can feel confident that you made the right choice and are doing what is best for your clients.


We offer full expert witness services for wage and hour matters. Learn more and explore our dynamic damage models at fairvaluemetrics.com

© 2026 Fair Value Metrics LLC. All rights reserved.

© 2026 Fair Value Metrics LLC. All rights reserved.