Microsoft Rewarding Employees With $1,500 Pandemic Bonus

Microsoft is rewarding a large percentage of its global employees with a $1,500 bonus, considering the challenging times everyone has faced since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The one-time bonus was detailed in an internal memo that has been seen by The Verge, with the reward being announced to employees today.

The bonus will apply to a wide range of Microsoft employees, from full-time staff to contractors. Anyone below corporate vice president level who has worked at the company on or before March 31, 2021, will be eligible. This does seem to only apply to core Microsoft employees, however, with workers at Microsoft-owned company’s such as LinkedIn, GitHub, and the recently acquired ZeniMax not qualifying.

Microsoft isn’t the first company that shared profits with employees during the pandemic. Facebook, Amazon, and more have also offered employees bonuses, although Microsoft is one of the higher payers on that scale. The entire program is reportedly going to cost Microsoft around $200 million, which, as The Verge points out, is around less than two days’ worth of profits for the software giant.

Microsoft has generated over $160 billion since the start of the pandemic, in part thanks to its many services such as Microsoft Teams becoming vital to millions of workers globally. Its cloud services, Windows and laptop sales, and Xbox growth have also contributed favorable to this figure. Microsoft has also donated more than $98 million to Washington state nonprofits and plans to contribute a further $60 million more by the end of July.