50.000 Already Have
Their "Aguinaldo" in
Hand
The "Aguinaldo" has yet
to be paid by employers,
however, some 50.000
have theirs already in
hand, according to the
BAC San José, who says
they have already
processed and paid out
the cash advances.
The aguinaldo is the
annual Christmas bonus
paid by employers to all
employees. Employers are
required to pay the
aguinaldo beginning on
December 1 and not later
than December 21, or
face a fine imposed by
the Ministerio de
Trabajo (Labour
ministry).
The aguinaldo is
equivalent, for
simplicity, the average
of one months salary
earned between December
1, 2006 and November 20,
2007 or part thereof if
the employee has been
working less than the
full 12 months.
The state banks, Banco
Nacional (BN), Banco de
Costa Rica (BCR) and
Banco Popular have all
been promoting a cash
advance of up to 90% of
the expected aguinaldo.
The private banks have
also joined the band
wagon, led by the BAC
San José.
Each financial
institution has its
regulations on the cash
advance, which require
the person to be a
customer of the bank,
the cash advance to be
paid by December 21st
and at an interest rate
up to 9 points above the
base rate for a six
month deposit set by the
Central Bank.
Experts have criticized
the banks for the
practice, warning the
public that spending
their aguinaldo before
having it in hand is not
a good option. Retailers
on the other hand have
welcomed the promotion
with open arms, a few of
the large retailers even
offering their own
version of an aguinaldo
cash advance for
purchases made in their
stores.
The government has
announced that it will
pay its aguinaldo to the
165.000 central
government employees on
December 5. State
institutions and
agencies, like ICE and
the INS, pay their
aguinaldo on a different
schedule of the central
government.
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