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How do I set up waiting periods and retention periods?

Two different time-based holds, when to use each, and how they affect the bonus.

Purpose

Both waiting and retention periods hold back bonus money for a stretch of time. They serve different purposes.

This article explains the difference and how to set each one up.

When To Use This

Use this when:

  • You're setting up a new bonus pool
  • A worker asks "why is my bonus on hold?"
  • You want to add a quality-control buffer to your program

The Difference

Use waiting periods as a short-term quality buffer. Use retention as a long-term commitment incentive.

Setting Waiting Periods

Waiting periods apply to all bonus line items going through a particular pool. When a line item is created, it sits in Held status for the waiting period before becoming payable.

To configure:

  1. Go to Settings → Bonuses
  2. Edit the bonus pool
  3. Find the waiting period field
  4. Enter days (e.g. 14)
  5. Save

What happens during the hold:

  • Manager and admin can see the held line items on the dashboard
  • Held items can be released early, extended, or voided
  • After the waiting period, items automatically move to In Process status and become payable

Setting Retention Periods

Retention is configured per role on each bonus pool. You set retention days for:

  • Crew
  • Crew Lead
  • Manager
  • Other

When a worker earns a bonus, a portion is retained based on their role's retention days. That portion sits in retention until the days elapse, then releases.

If the worker leaves before the retention period closes, they forfeit the retained portion.

Worked Example

A crew worker earns a $200 bonus. The pool has:

  • Waiting period: 14 days
  • Crew retention days: 90

What happens:

  1. Day 0 — Bonus calculated. Line item created in Held status.
  2. Day 14 — Waiting period ends. Item moves to In Process.
  3. Day 14 — Statement is generated for the period. The item lands on the statement.
  4. But — A portion of the $200 (per your retention %) is held back another 76 days.
  5. Day 90 — Retention closes. The retained portion releases on a future statement.

What If You Don't Want Retention?

You don't have to use it. Set retention days to 0 for all roles and the entire bonus pays out at the end of the waiting period.

What If You Don't Want a Waiting Period?

Same. Set waiting period to 0 and bonuses pay out as soon as the next statement runs.

For most customers starting out:

  • Waiting period: 7-14 days
  • Crew retention: 60-90 days
  • Crew Lead retention: 90 days
  • Manager retention: 90-180 days

Less is more. Aggressive retention turns workers off the program.

Common Mistakes & How To Fix Them

  • "All my bonuses are stuck in held status" That's the waiting period working as designed. They'll release after the configured days. To release one early, manually release it from the dashboard.

  • "Workers are quitting before retention closes" Either retention is too aggressive, or there's a cultural issue. Try reducing retention days.

  • "I can't find the waiting period field" It's on the bonus pool, not the org settings. Open the bonus pool modal.

  • "Retention is being applied to bonuses earned years ago" Retention applies per-bonus-line-item. Tenure of the worker doesn't matter — what matters is when the line item was created.

  • How do bonus pools work, and how do I configure one?
  • What are safeguards in Protiv?
  • How do I hold or release a bonus line item?
  • What is a bonus statement?