The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on Sunday reminded employers of holiday pay guidelines for the coming long weekend.
Oct. 30, a Monday, is the nationwide Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE), while Nov. 1 is All Saint’s Day and Nov. 2 All Souls’ Day – all special non-working holidays.
Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma told TeleRadyo Serbisyo that non-working holidays generally mean “no work, no pay” for employees.
But if an employee reports for work during at least one of these dates, he or she should be entitled to an additional 30 percent of their salary, Laguesma said.
When an employee works overtime during a special non-working holiday, their 130 percent compensation will be increased by another 30 percent, he added.
Moreover, when an employee works during a special non-working holiday which falls on their day off, their employer should grant a 50-percent wage augmentation instead of an additional 30 percent premium, the Labor chief said.
The “no work, no pay” rule is also subject to qualifications, he said.
“Maybe there exists a better company policy that even if you don’t come in because of its holiday, you will be paid or whatever kind of arrangement you have with your employer,” Laguesma said in Filipino.
“If there is a collective bargaining agreement that states [that every] special holiday our workers still have a salary, it should be followed,” he added.
Filipinos will head to their nearest polling precincts on Halloween or Monday next week to vote for over 42,000 barangay chairmen, the same number of SK or youth council chairs, and over 588,000 village and youth councilors combined.
Nov. 1 and 2, meanwhile, are observed as “Undas” in the country, when Filipinos flock to cemeteries, columbaria, and churches to remember their dearly departed. Jimbo Gulle