Holidays and wages

EDITORIAL

At the rate holidays are being declared in this country, it is not surprising if working days are dwindling to the consternation of businessmen in the private sector who are forced, under law, to pay additional wages.

President Aquino has declared Dec. 25 (Christmas Day), Dec. 30 (Rizal Day) and Jan. 1 as regular holidays while Dec. 24 and Dec. 31 are special non-working holidays.

“To foster closer family ties and enable our countrymen to observe Christmas more meaningfully, it is but fitting to declare Dec. 24 as an additional special non-working day throughout the country,” stated Proclamation 361 issued by Malacañang last March 29.

Under Proclamation 295 that Aquino issued in December 2011, Dec. 24 was not included in the list of holidays for this year unlike Dec. 25, which falls under “regular holidays” or important dates in the country’s culture and history.

This, while the Department of Labor and Employment Tuesday reported that aside from Christmas bonus and 13th month pay, workers nationwide are also entitled to holiday pay.

Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said all employers must comply with pay rules and other core labor and occupational standards or face sanctions for violating regulations. DOLE issued an early reminder for employers nationwide so that they could properly comply with the holiday pay rules.

Under the law, Baldoz said workers are entitled to receive at least 200 percent or double their regular daily pay if they opt to work during regular holiday.

If an employee worked in excess of eight hours (overtime work), he or she will be paid an additional 30 percent of his or her hourly rate on that day (hourly rate of the basic daily wage x 200 percent x 130 percent x number of hours worked).

Workers required to work during a regular holiday on their day off will receive additional 30 percent of their daily rate of 200 percent.If an employee worked in excess of eight hours during a regular holiday that also falls on his or her rest day, he or she will be paid an additional 30 percent of his or her hourly rate.

Those who work during special non-working days will get an additional 30 percent on top of their regular daily pay.Baldoz said the “no-work, no-pay” principle will apply to those who would not report for work, unless there is a favorable company policy, practice, or collective bargaining agreement granting payment on a special day.

Additional pay and less working hours are always welcome to government or private employees. But to entrepreneurs or businessmen who pay extra cost for little or no labor, this is bad news -- especially to those who are in dire straits trying to cope in maintaining business with increasing cost of materials, labor, red tape and unfair government regulations.