All 150 employees at law firm D Young received two bonuses in 2011. Handed out in June and November, the payments were 10% higher, on average, than those awarded in 2010.

Jennifer Mead, HR manager at D Young, said: “We are really pleased to have hit the targets to pay bonuses right through the recession. The partners were keen to recognise that everyone has worked so hard.”

The firm’s bonus system is categorised into fee-earning and non-fee-earning staff, with the latter earning a percentage of salary based on the firm’s and individual performance.

For fee earners, the bonus calculation largely depends on how they have performed against targets.

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