Requesting Early Leave for Tet – Does It Mean the Company Won't Pay the 13th Month Salary?

The 2019 Labor Code and its guiding documents do not define what the 13th month salary is; however, it can be understood as a bonus payment for employees.

Article 104 of the 2019 Labor Code stipulates the issue of bonuses as follows:

- A bonus is a sum of money or property or other forms given by the employer to the employee based on production and business results and the level of job completion of the employee.

- The bonus regulations are decided by the employer and publicly announced at the workplace after consulting with the grassroots-level labor representative organization, if such an organization exists at the workplace.

Thus, the issue of the 13th-month salary (bonus) is an internal matter of each company that the law does not interfere with. Each company will have its own bonus regulations.

Therefore, whether your company’s action of not giving you the 13th-month salary because you applied for an early Tet leave is right or wrong should be based on the content of the bonus regulations of the company you work for.

Sincerely!