The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has reminded employers in the private sector that the 13th month pay for wage and salary workers is mandated by law. On Friday, Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz issued Department Advisory No. 03, reminding employers of Section 8 of Presidential Decree No. 851 which requires employers to give their rank-and-file employees their 13th month pay on or before December 24 of every year. In a statement posted on the DOLE website, Baldoz said covered employers shall be asked to make a report of their compliance with PD 851 to the nearest DOLE Regional Office not later than January 15 of each year. The report shall indicate the following information:
Name of Establishment Address Principal product or business Total employment Total number of workers benefited Amount granted per employee Total amount of benefits granted Name, position and telephone number of person giving information Baldoz, however, said that unlike the 13th month pay, the law does not require employers to grant their workers a Christmas bonus, which she said remains a management prerogative. She stressed that the Christmas bonus is not a part of the benefits mandated by law, but employers may also grant their workers bonuses apart from the 13th month pay, depending on their discretion, or collective bargaining agreement (CBA) and other agreements. In the same statement, the DOLE’s Bureau of Working Conditions (BWC) clarified the pertinent provisions of PD 851 on the issuance of the 13th month pay. The BWC, a DOLE agency administering the country’s laws on working conditions, said that the 13th month pay must not be less than one-twelfth (1/12) of the total basic salary earned by an employee in a calendar year. The BWC added that while employers are required to pay their employees the 13th month pay not later than December 24 of every year, employers may give their employees one-half of it before the opening of the school year, and the remaining half on or before December 24. "For this purpose, the frequency of payment of the monetary benefit may be the subject of an agreement between the employer and the recognized collective bargaining agent of the employees," the BWC said. — Jerrie Abella/RSJ, GMANews.TV 
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