discretionary bonus scheme do i have a claim?

[wuzzy]

morning all,
Someone in my local said the following events might mean i have a claim against my current employer and i'm hoping for some advice before i set off down a road with no turning back.
i started with my current employer 2 years ago it was agreed with my manager at the time that i would be entitled to a discretionary bonus based on unit sales, the bonus went ahead and was duly paid for the following 6 months without fail i had to submit claim forms they were in turn signed by my manager and i was paid every month. This stopped all of a sudden as our MD decided he had not agreed to this and i would not longer be paid. I argued but faced with being made redundant if i did ( our MD is that way inclined) i have since submitted my notice and am currently on gardening leave until the 18th as ive come to the conclusion that i cannot work for an employer who makes decisions like this on a whim.
So main question is do i have grounds for a claim as they paid for 6 months without fail ?

thanks in advance

[Kati]

Tagging Ula mariefab xx

[ULA]

Was the bonus part of any contractual arrangement in your terms of employment, or detailed in any staff handbook? If it was not a contractual arrangement and it was "discretionary" as you have indicated in your post then unfortunately it would be hard to make a claim. In the same way as discretion was used to apply the bonus, discretion can be used to not apply the bonus.

What your friend may be thinking of is "custom and practice" which is actually quite hard to prove and the fact you were given a bonus over a six month period does not mean it can be established that this principle should apply in this situation.

[wuzzy]

Hi thanks for the response, the wording in any paperwork is " bonuses may be paid on the discretion of management basis". On another note my duties did nit change and the same sales performance was expected ? does that change anything

[ULA]

Thanks for your reply.

Unfortunately no the further information does not change the situation as it clearly states "bonuses may be paid on the discretion of management." It's that word discretion and the fact it is non-contractual which means they can decide not to pay the bonus.

Appreciate this is probably not the response you wanted.

[wuzzy]

Nope thats fine fine thanks did not want to embark on a claim without making sure there were sufficient grounds for it.. thanks