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BUSINESS COMMENTARY

Right answer to the bonus question

The Times

Bang goes the John Lewis bonus. How touchy-feely is that? For the first time since 1953, the 80,000 workers are getting zip. Who’d want to be called a “partner” for that?

A nice big zero is the best on offer from Dame Sharon White, the chairwoman of the department stores-to-Waitrose combo. Coronavirus made her decision easier: she’s not even waited for the year-end, relaying the bad news at the interim figures. But even without Covid-19 you’d have had to question the payout. Its declining value has mirrored the performance of the business. Her predecessor, Sir Charlie Mayfield, cut the partnership bonus in each of his final six years — down from 2013’s 17 per cent to 3 per cent. One of Dame Sharon’s first acts