John Lewis Partnership has announced that all of its 69,000 employees will receive a cash bonus worth 13% of their annual pay, a 7% decline from last year.
The retail firm, which owns John Lewis department stores and Waitrose, has said employees will share a £125.5 million bonus pot. This amounts to just under seven weeks' pay each, regardless of their role or seniority.
The bonus pot flexes up or down year to year to reflect the annual performance of the business. In 2008, partners' bonuses were worth 20% of annual salary.
In its financial results for the year ended 31 January 2009, John Lewis Partnership announced a 3% rise in sales and a fall in operating profit of 18%.
Charlie Mayfield, chairman of John Lewis Partnership, said the firm had met the challenges of deteriorating conditions.
"Our customers stayed loyal to John Lewis and Waitrose and our partners [employees] worked harder than ever to provide the highest possible standards of customer service. The bonus announced today is well deserved and has been earned by all our partners.
Meanwhile, following the decision to reduce the waiting period to three years from five, 11,000 partners joined the defined benefit (DB) pension scheme. A defined contribution (DC) scheme was also introduced to provide benefits during this time.
In addition, £66 million was invested in partner benefits, such as discounts, subsidised catering and leisure spending.