According to reports from businesses nationwide, the highest bonus in the country for the coming Tet (lunar New Year) is VND709 million, while about 118,000 employees will be given no Tet bonus, the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs reported on Friday.

This bonus rate, which is offered by a foreign-invested enterprise in Ho Chi Minh City, is 9.2 percent higher than the highest rate for the last Tet, said Tong Van Lai, deputy head of the ministry’s Labor and Wage Department.

The average bonus rate for the coming Tet is VND4.4 million per employee, about 20 percent higher than that for the last Tet, he said.

Meanwhile, about 420 businesses in four northern provinces, including Hai Duong, Thanh Hoa, Phu Tho and Bac Ninh, have reported that they are not capable of offering Tet bonus for their 118,000 employees.

Businesses have the right to give or not give Tet bonus to their employees, so the ministry cannot interfere in this issue, Tai said.

It is worthnoting that many businesses not only offer no Tet bonus to their staff but also fail to pay salary to them on schedule.

“Twenty-two provinces and cities have reported that 79 local businesses have yet to pay salary arrears totaling VND75.6 billion ($3.57 million) to their 10,168 employees,” Lai said.

These businesses have no ability to pay their salary arrears, he said. "Some of them are on the verge of bankruptcy while some others have halted operation."