Hi Rat,
Some unscrupulous companies still try to "bond" you. I was bonded at my last company,FLS. It was one of their ways of trying to stop engineers leaving!!It didn't work-ho ho!!
Bonding is now an illegal practice under European law no matter what your company are telling you. It is all to do with the free movement of employees.
An engineer from British Airways went to the European court over a bond they said he owed them when he left. European court ruled in favour of the engineer and informed BA bonding was not a legal practice!!Case dismissed.....
Hope this is of use.