Opinion ID: 2972707
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The ROAM Bonus Program

Text: Among other employee benefits, Cooper maintains an annual employee bonus program known as the “ROAM” bonus (an acronym for Return on Assets Managed). At the beginning of 2 each year, Cooper sets a projected ROAM target;1 the ROAM bonus is based on how well Cooper performs in comparison to this goal and is awarded as a percentage of an eligible employee’s salary. All of Cooper’s salaried employees, including all of the warehouse employees at its Cedar Rapids facility, who are on the payroll on December 31 of the year in which the bonus is earned are eligible to participate in the ROAM bonus program. None of Cooper’s unionized employees participate in the program. The bonus is distributed to all eligible employees in mid- to late February of the subsequent year, following a vote of Cooper’s Board of Directors approving the amount of the bonus. The amount of the ROAM bonus varies each year. For example, for the years 1997 - 2001, the bonus ranged between 1.38% and 3.65% of eligible employees’ base salaries. The 2002 bonus was significantly higher at 6.2%.