Uptown Cebu City’s business district where some high-end hotels and restaurants are located | CDN FILE PHOTO
CEBU CITY, Philippines – The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has mandated that hotels, restaurants, and similar businesses must give their employees the full amount of collected service charges.
Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma signed February 1, 2024 Department Order No. 242, titled “Revised Implementing Rules and Regulation of Article 96 of the Labor Code of the Philippines,” as amended by Republic Act No. 11360, entitled An Act Providing that Service Charges collected by Hotels, Restaurants and other Similar Establishments.
According to the order, service charges should be paid to employees every two weeks or twice a month.
These payments, the order said, should not affect the determination of minimum wage increases for the establishments in case a wage order takes effect.
Laguesma has instructed regional, provincial, field, and satellite offices to monitor compliance, and the order takes effect 15 days after being published in two newspapers. /clorenciana
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