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AT A GLANCE:
Pursuant to the Revised Guidelines on the Implementation of the 13th Month Pay Law, the following certain types of employees are also entitled to 13th month pay:
- Employees paid by results;
- Those with multiple employers; and,
- Private school teachers.
The Revised Guidelines on the Implementation of the 13th Month Pay Law, introduces the 13th Month Pay for certain types of employees.
- Employees Paid by Results. — Employees who are paid on piece work basis are by law entitled to the 13th month pay.
Employees who are paid a fixed or guaranteed wage plus commission are also entitled to the mandated 13th month pay, based on their total earnings during the calendar year, i.e., on both their fixed or guaranteed wage and commission.
Jurisprudence says:
Philippine Duplicators, Inc. vs. NLRC and Philippine Duplicators Employees Union-Tupas (G.R. No. 110068, November 11, 1993):
There is no question that the sales commissions earned by salesmen who make or close a sale of duplicating machines distributed by petitioner corporation constitute part of the compensation or remuneration paid to salesmen for serving as salesmen, and hence as part of the “wage” or “salary” of petitioner’s salesmen. Indeed, it appears that petitioner pays its salesmen a small fixed or guaranteed wage; the greater part of the salesmen’s wages or salaries being composed of the sales or incentive commissions earned on actual sales closed by them. No doubt this particular salary structure was intended for the benefit of petitioner corporation, on the apparent assumption that thereby its salesmen would be moved to greater enterprise and diligence and close more sales in the expectation of increasing their sales commissions. This, however, does not detract from the character of such commissions as part of the salary or wage paid to each of its salesmen for rendering services to petitioner corporation.
To recapitulate, the 13th month pay of employees paid a fixed or guaranteed wage plus sales commission must be equivalent to one-twelfth (1/12) of the total earnings (fixed or guaranteed wage-cum-sales commissions) during the calendar year. Considering that petitioner has excluded from the computation of the 13th month pay the sales commissions earned by its individual salesmen, we believe and so hold that petitioner must be held liable to pay for the deficiency.
Philippine Agricultural Commercial and Industrial Workers Union-TUCP vs. NLRC and Vallacar Transit, Inc. (G.R. No. 107994, August 14, 1995):
It is clear that every employee receiving a commission in addition to a fixed or guaranteed wage or salary, is entitled to a 13th month pay. For purposes of entitling rank and file employees a 13th month pay, it is immaterial whether the employees concerned are paid a guaranteed wage plus commission or a commission with guaranteed wage inasmuch as the bottom line is that they receive a guaranteed wage. This is correctly construed in the MOLE Explanatory Bulletin No. 86-12.
In the case at bench, while the bus drivers and conductors of respondent company are considered by the latter as being compensated on a commission basis, they are not paid purely by what they receive as commission. As admitted by respondent company, the said bus drivers and conductors are automatically entitled to the basic minimum pay mandated by law in case the commissions they earned be less than their basic minimum for eight (8) hours work.6 Evidently therefore, the commissions form part of the wage or salary of the bus drivers and conductors. A contrary interpretation would allow an employer to skirt the law and would result in an absurd situation where an employee who receives a guaranteed minimum basic pay cannot be entitled to a 13th month pay simply because he is technically referred to by his employer per the CBA as an employee compensated on a purely commission basis. Such would be a narrow interpretation of the law, certainly not in accord with the liberal spirit of our labor laws. Moreover, what is controlling is not the label attached to the remuneration that the employee receives but the nature of the remuneration7 and the purpose for which the 13th month pay was given to alleviate the plight of the working masses who are receiving low wages.
- Those with Multiple Employers. — Government employees working part time in a private enterprise, including private educational institutions, as well as employees working in two or more private firms, whether on full or part time basis, are entitled to the required 13th month pay from all their private employers regardless of their total earnings from each or all their employers.chan robles virtual law library
- Private School Teachers. — Private school teachers, including faculty members of universities and colleges, are entitled to the required 13th month pay, regardless of the number of months they teach or are paid within a year, if they have rendered service for at least one (1) month within a year.
Read also: How to Compute Your 13th Month Pay?
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