By virtue of Republic Act 9256, every August 21 is a special non-working holiday in the Philippines. The law was signed by Pres. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on February 25, 2004. It was sponsored by Senate President Franklin Drilon and House Speaker Jose de Venecia.

The pay rules mandate that if the employee did not work, the “no work, no pay” principle shall apply, unless there is a favorable company policy, practice, or collective bargaining agreement (CBA) granting payment on special day.

For work done during the special day, the workers shall be paid an additional 30 percent of their daily rate on the first eight hours of work. The ‘Daily rate x 130 percent plus COLA’ scheme will be observed.

For work done in excess of eight hours (overtime work), the workers will be paid an additional 30 percent of their hourly rate on said day. The computation will be: hourly rate of the basic daily wage x 130 percent x 130 percent x number of hours worked.

For work done during a special day that also falls on the workers’ rest day, they shall be paid an additional 50 percent of their daily rate on the first eight hours of work, thus, the ‘Daily rate x 150 percent + COLA’ computation will apply.

For work done in excess of eight hours (overtime work) during a special day that also falls on the workers’ rest day, they shall be paid an additional 30 percent of their hourly rate on said day, or a computation of ‘hourly rate of the basic daily wage x 150 percent x 130 percent x number of hours worked.