The recently issued work regulation list from the Health Human Resources Company has sparked widespread discussion among sector employees, after Article 26 stated that: "The company may grant its employees an annual bonus," a phrasing that raises questions about the legal nature of the annual bonus, and whether it has shifted from being a job right to a discretionary benefit.

Legal advisor Dr. Walid Al-Otaibi revealed to "Okaz" that the phrasing differs from the approach established by the regulations and job-related laws that governed the employment relationship between employees and the Ministry of Health. The Civil Service System, the executive regulation for human resources in the civil service, the health jobs regulation, and the work organization regulation for self-operating programs stipulated the granting of the annual bonus in terms that imply obligation and entitlement, using terms like: "is granted," and "is to be granted," which indicate in the legal phrasing that the bonus must be granted whenever the employee meets its legal conditions, considering it part of their job rights, and not an optional benefit.

Attorney Al-Otaibi clarified that there is a fundamental difference between the terms of obligation and entitlement, such as "is granted," and "is to be granted" found in previous regulations and laws, and the term "may" used in the new regulation. The term "may" is considered one of the permissive terms that grants the employer discretionary authority to grant or not grant the bonus, unless another provision limits this authority or makes granting it mandatory upon meeting specific conditions.

Who is entitled?

The executive regulation of the labor system for establishments: granting employees annual bonuses, as Article (26) states that "the establishment may grant employees annual bonuses, the percentage of which is determined based on the financial position of the establishment." It also stipulated that to be entitled to the bonus, the employee must achieve at least an average level in the periodic performance evaluation, after a full year from the date of their employment or from the date they received the previous bonus, while allowing the establishment to grant an exceptional bonus according to the controls it sets in this regard. This was included in the updated executive regulation of the labor system, which was issued by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development last month.