Dear PAO,

I am a nurse working in a hospital with rotating shifts from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., 6 a.m. to 2 p.m., and 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. My daily basic salary is P800. On April 9, 2025, I worked from 10 pm until 6 am the next day. Upon receiving my pay slip, I noticed that I only received an amount of P200 as holiday pay for April 9 (Araw ng Kagitingan). I expected 200 percent of my daily salary because I worked during the holiday. Is my employer correct in paying me only P200 as holiday pay while my fellow nurses received P800? Thank you.

Maia

Dear Maia,

The answer to your inquiry can be found under Article 94(b) of the Labor Code, which expressly provides that: “The employer may require an employee to work on any [regular] holiday but such employee shall be paid a compensation equivalent to twice his regular rate.” Furthermore, it is likewise stated that entitlement to holiday pay shall extend to employees of retail and service establishments only if said establishments employ ten (10) or more persons.

In computing holiday pay, it is necessary to distinguish the nature of the holiday, specifically whether it is classified as a regular holiday or a special non-working holiday. In the Philippines, there are 13 regular holidays and at least eight special non-working holidays in a year. According to the Labor Code and applicable jurisprudence, employees who render work on a regular holiday shall be entitled to holiday pay equivalent to 200 percent of their regular daily wage for the first eight hours of service. Conversely, employees who do not render work on a regular holiday shall still be entitled to receive 100 percent of their daily wage for that day.

In the case of special non-working holidays, employees who perform work shall be compensated with holiday pay premium equivalent to 130 percent of their regular daily wage for the first eight hours worked. However, employees who do not render any service on a special non-working holiday shall not be entitled to any compensation for that day.

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on March 24, 2025 issued Labor Advisory 4, series of 2025, which states that “[f]or work done during the regular holiday, the employer shall pay a total of 200 percent of the employee’s wage for that day for the first eight hours (basic wage x 200%).”

In your case, although you were scheduled to work your regular night shift from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., only the hours rendered from 10 p.m. to 11:59 p.m. on April 9 fall within the regular holiday. Accordingly, you may be entitled to holiday pay at the rate of 200 percent of your regular hourly wage for work performed during this two-hour period. The remaining hours worked, from 12:00 a.m. to 6 a.m. on April 10, fall on a regular working day and are therefore compensable only at the regular rate, without additional holiday pay. With respect to the other nurses who rendered service during their regular shifts, specifically, from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. and from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. during regular holiday (Araw ng Kagitingan), they are entitled to receive 200 percent of their regular daily wage because they completed an eight-hour work during a regular holiday.

We hope that we were able to answer your queries. This advice was based solely on the facts you have narrated and our appreciation of the same. Our opinion may vary when other facts are changed or elaborated. We appreciate your trust and support.

Editor’s note: Dear PAO is a daily column of the Public Attorney’s Office. Questions for Chief Acosta may be sent to [email protected]