Keep in the bonus: every third Russian had his bonus cut or cancelled

Over the past year, employers have reduced the amount of bonuses or stopped paying them at all to almost a third of Russians, Izvestia found out. Managers, IT specialists, and realtors complain most often about the loss of bonuses. Against the background of higher taxes and key interest rates, businesses have no opportunity to pay more money. Although staff shortages persist, companies are now attracting and retaining people with other benefits — VMI, training, corporate discounts, and an expanded social package. What the reduction in monetary rewards will lead to is in the Izvestia article.

Employee bonuses in 2025

Every third employee who used to receive bonuses has had their bonuses cut or stopped accruing altogether over the past year. This follows from the June study. hh.ru and the NPF "Evolution" (Izvestia has it). 20% of respondents say that the amount of remuneration has decreased, and 9% say that payments have stopped altogether.

Among professional categories, bonuses were most often cut or canceled for managers, IT specialists, realtors, as well as employees in sales, finance, and construction. The top 5 regions whose residents complained of being deprived of bonuses included Sverdlovsk (42%), Novosibirsk (36%), Samara (32%) and Rostov (31%) regions, as well as the Republic of Tatarstan (32%).

According to the survey results, top managers and middle managers have the highest bonuses: one in five of them receives a bonus of 100% of their salary. 18% of representatives of the IT industry noted that they expect an "increased premium," but did not specify which one. Small bonuses are awarded in the transportation industry, retail trade and the scientific field (mostly only 10% of the salary).

The trend towards reducing the size of premiums or canceling them was also confirmed in "Work.ru". Izvestia contacted the Ministry of Labor and asked if the agency was recording such a trend.

Companies are now largely reducing their hiring and staffing costs. Prior to this, the shortage of personnel in the labor market and high competition for applicants significantly increased people's expectations, as well as the cost of attracting and maintaining personnel, said the deputy director of the service "Work.<url>", Alexander Veterkov, Chief Operating Officer of Sberpodbor. But business opportunities are not unlimited.

— Many companies, in pursuit of specialists, were forced to increase fixed payments, and by 2025 they had reached a point where financial leverage as the only way to motivate them no longer worked. The room for maneuver is decreasing, especially against the background of an increase in the key interest rate and a decrease in the availability of leverage — and this is especially sensitive for businesses focused on mass consumer demand," said Dmitry Dudarev, HR Director at KROS.

As Vladimir Chernov, analyst at Freedom Finance Global, explained, bonuses and the variable part are the first things you can save on without official salary cuts and formal reductions.

Businesses are now striving to optimize processes and increase productivity. Reducing personnel costs helps companies to reallocate the budget for the development and implementation of new technologies, said Alexander Veterkov. When paying bonuses, employers often rely on the capabilities of their budget, rather than the quality of staff work, agrees Farida Mirzabalayeva, Associate Professor of the Basic Department of the CCI of the Russian Federation "Human Resource Management" at Plekhanov Russian University of Economics.

At the same time, the introduction of a progressive tax rate played a role, said Viktor Lyashok, senior researcher at the INSAP Center of the IPEI Presidential Academy. Many organizations have shifted year-end bonus payments from the first quarter of 2025 to the end of 2024. According to Rosstat, employee benefits jumped sharply last December, by 11% compared to the same period in 2023.

What will the reduction in premiums lead to?

From a legal point of view, bonuses in Russia can be either mandatory (if they are prescribed in an employment contract or a bonus provision), or completely discretionary — that is, at the discretion of the employer, Vladimir Chernov drew attention. That is why companies often design bonuses as "optional" in order to have flexibility in managing payroll funds.

In addition, starting from September 1, 2025, the bonus amount can be reduced only in the month in which the employee received a penalty, Farida Mirzabalayeva from Plekhanov Russian University of Economics reminded. A reduction in remuneration should not lead to a reduction in the entire monthly salary by more than 20%. Such a measure is quite timely, because bonuses often become a tool of manipulation and unfair distribution among employees, the expert added.

According to the study hh.ru According to NPF Evolution, a quarter of the respondents have a bonus ranging from 10 to 30% of their salary, 15% named the amount of bonuses at 10% of their salary, and almost the same number — from 30 to 50%.

The reduction in bonuses creates a negative background in the labor market, because workers become less motivated, and this, in turn, can lead to an acceleration of staff turnover, said Maria Koleda, head of the information department of the independent trade union Novy Trud. The expert added: when employees have their rewards reduced or removed altogether, they start looking for new opportunities. Employees do not always leave immediately, but they begin to actively monitor offers — this is called hidden turnover, added Vladimir Chernov from Freedom Finance Global.

Despite the gradual reduction in bonuses, salaries are rising in all sectors of the economy. According to "Work.<url>", on average, in the first quarter of 2025, Russians were offered 97.5 thousand rubles, an increase of 13% compared to the same period last year. The leaders in the growth of salary offers are finance and insurance, manufacturing and industry, as well as IT, said Alexander Veterkov from "Work.ru". And by the end of the year, as Izvestia wrote earlier, average salaries will increase to 100 thousand rubles.,

What bonuses are offered to employees in the Russian Federation

— In order to retain key employees, enterprises are switching to alternative ways of retaining staff. Most often, the emphasis is on non-material motivation. They offer a flexible schedule, the possibility of remote work, participation in interesting projects or training at the expense of the employer," said Vladimir Chernov from Freedom Finance Global.

One of the key trends now is the personalization of bonuses, the press service of Avito Rabota reported. In other words, employers strive to anticipate the needs of candidates and adapt to their requests. For example, the corporate lawyer's service for staff is gaining popularity in law and consulting firms. This approach not only increases loyalty, but also helps to attract those specialists for whom these advantages are important, the recruiting company clarified.

In addition, according to SuperJob, employers have become more likely to give gifts for the holidays, issue interest-free loans, and organize consultations with psychologists, lawyers, and financiers. At the same time, businesses have become less likely to pay for meals, provide staff with discounts on their products or services, and pay for vacation packages.

The organizations also offer extended social packages (VMI and transfer from home to office), non-material recognition (certificates, mention in company news, participation in strategic sessions), Vladimir Chernov specified.

In addition, employers are ready to co—finance employee pensions, Izvestia wrote earlier, if the state encourages such investments. As noted in the study hh.ru and the NPF "Evolution", almost half of Russians would even be willing to give part of their bonus for the formation of savings for old age.