Contractual employee seeks holiday pay

Dear PAO,
If an individual is working for a certain company as a contractual employee (five months only), is he entitled to receive a holiday pay even if he doesn’t report to work? Or will he get the double of his pay only when he reported to work? Please help me. Thanks.
Mark

Dear Mark,
To squarely address your concern, let us study the concept of holiday pay.

Article 94 of the Labor Code of the Philippines provides, to wit:
“Art. 94. Right to holiday pay.

a. Every worker shall be paid his regular daily wage during regular holidays, except in retail and service establishments regularly employing less than ten (10) workers;

b. The employer may require an employee to work on any holiday but such employee shall be paid a compensation equivalent to twice his regular rate; and

x x x”

In line with this, Section 1, Rule IV, Book III of the Omnibus Rules Implementing the Labor Code, dictates that all employees are entitled to holiday pay and it further enumerates the employees who are not, to wit:

“SECTION 1. Coverage.—This rule shall apply to all employees except:

(a) Those of the government and any of the political subdivision, including government-owned and controlled corporation;

(b) Those of retail and service establishments regularly employing less than ten (10) workers;

(c) Domestic helpers and persons in the personal service of another;

(d) Managerial employees as defined in Book Three of the Code;

(e) Field personnel and other employees whose time and performance is unsupervised by the employer including those who are engaged on task or contract basis, purely commission basis, or those who are paid a fixed amount for performing work irrespective of the time consumed in the performance thereof.”

Thus, it is clear from the foregoing that a contractual employee is entitled to be paid his regular daily wage during regular holidays even if he has not reported for work provided that the said employee is not a contractual employee of one of those enumerated above.

Furthermore, if the employee is required to work on any holiday, he shall be paid compensation equivalent to twice his regular rate.

We hope that we were able to enlighten you on the matter. –Persida Acosta, Manila Times

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