Article 87 of the Labor Code: Overtime work
Status: In force
What does Article 87 say?
Work may be performed beyond eight (8) hours a day provided that the employee is paid for the overtime work, an additional compensation equivalent to his regular wage plus at least twenty-five percent (25%) thereof. Work performed beyond eight hours on a holiday or rest day shall be paid an additional compensation equivalent to the rate of the first eight hours on a holiday or rest day plus at least thirty percent (30%) thereof.
Read the Labor Code on the DOLE website (it uses the article numbers before 2015)
What does it mean in plain language?
Article 87 of the Labor Code is the overtime rule. Work beyond eight hours a day is allowed, but the employee must be paid his or her regular wage plus at least 25% for each overtime hour. Overtime on a rest day or holiday is paid at the rate for that day plus at least 30% of it.
The article keeps the same number after the 2015 renumbering of the Labor Code, as the DOLE renumbered edition shows.
How does it work in real life?
Dina: two hours after office
Dina works from 8 am to 5 pm and then stays until 7 pm to finish a report her manager asked for. The two hours after her eighth hour are overtime, each paid at her hourly rate plus at least 25%.
Paolo: overtime on his rest day
Paolo's rest day is Sunday, but his employer asks him to work 10 hours that Sunday. The first eight hours are rest day work, paid with a premium of at least 30% under Article 93. The last two hours are overtime on a rest day: the rest day hourly rate plus at least 30% of it.
Celia: a long Monday, a short Tuesday
Celia works 10 hours on Monday and leaves 2 hours early on Tuesday with her supervisor's permission. Under Article 88, the 2 hours of undertime on Tuesday do not cancel the 2 hours of overtime on Monday.
What does this mean in practice?
- The overtime pay calculator computes the amounts, and the premium pay rates table shows the rates side by side.
- Overtime between 10 pm and 6 am also earns the night shift differential: see Article 86.
- A collective bargaining agreement or contract may give a higher premium. In the Coca-Cola case, the Court said Saturday work itself was not a benefit protected by Article 100: the benefit, "if ever there is one", was the premium paid for it, and the company could stop scheduling the work under its CBA.
- Records of the extra hours, such as time cards and logbooks, matter: in Zonio, the logbook entries were accepted as evidence of the 12-hour shifts.
- Unpaid overtime is a money claim, filed within three years from the time it accrued. See labor money claims prescription and Free legal help in the Philippines.
What does Article 87 say?
The article has two sentences:
Work may be performed beyond eight (8) hours a day provided that the employee is paid for the overtime work, an additional compensation equivalent to his regular wage plus at least twenty-five percent (25%) thereof. Work performed beyond eight hours on a holiday or rest day shall be paid an additional compensation equivalent to the rate of the first eight hours on a holiday or rest day plus at least thirty percent (30%) thereof.
In plain words:
- ordinary day: each hour beyond eight is paid at the hourly rate plus at least 25%;
- rest day or holiday: first find the rate for the first eight hours on that day (with its own premium under Article 93 or Article 94), then add at least 30% of that rate for each hour beyond eight.
What is overtime and what is not?
The Supreme Court explained the term in Coca-Cola Bottlers v. Iloilo Coca-Cola Plant Employees Labor Union (2018). After quoting Article 87, it said "overtime work is work exceeding eight hours within the worker's 24-hour workday." In that case, work on Saturdays inside the normal hours was not overtime. The premium that the company paid for Saturday work came from the collective bargaining agreement, not from Article 87.
In Zonio v. 1st Quantum Leap Security Agency (2021), a guard worked 12-hour shifts. The Court held that he was entitled to overtime pay for the work beyond eight hours, which was four hours for every shift.
What do the next articles add?
Three short articles complete the overtime rules:
- Article 88: undertime on one day may not be offset by overtime on another day. Allowing the employee to go on leave on some other day does not excuse the employer from paying the overtime premium.
- Article 89: lists the cases when an employer may require overtime, such as a declared emergency, disasters, urgent work on machines to avoid serious loss, perishable goods, and work started before the eighth hour that must be finished to prevent serious obstruction to the business. Overtime in those cases is still paid. See Can your employer require overtime?
- Article 90: for computing overtime and other additional pay, the "regular wage" includes the cash wage only, without deduction for facilities given by the employer.
Who is not covered?
Article 87 is in Book Three, Title I. Under Article 82, that title does not apply to government employees, managerial employees, field personnel, members of the employer's family who depend on him for support, domestic helpers, persons in the personal service of another, and workers paid by results as set by the Secretary of Labor. The implementing rules (1989 text), Book III, Rule I, Section 2, set the conditions for managerial employees, officers of the managerial staff and field personnel.
Frequently asked questions
How much is overtime pay under the Labor Code?
For work beyond eight hours on an ordinary day, the employee gets his or her regular wage plus at least 25% of it for each overtime hour. This is the first sentence of Article 87.
How much is overtime on a rest day or holiday?
Article 87 says work beyond eight hours on a holiday or rest day is paid at the rate for the first eight hours on that day plus at least 30% of that rate.
Can extra hours on one day make up for hours I missed on another day?
No. Article 88 says undertime work on any particular day shall not be offset by overtime work on any other day. Letting the employee go on leave on another day does not excuse the employer from paying the overtime premium.
Is work on a Saturday automatically overtime?
No. In Coca-Cola Bottlers v. Iloilo Coca-Cola Plant Employees Labor Union (2018), the Supreme Court said overtime is work exceeding eight hours within the worker's 24-hour workday. Saturday work within the normal hours is not overtime, though it may be paid a premium under a contract or as rest day work.
Is the overtime premium computed on the basic wage only?
Article 90 says that for overtime and other additional pay in this chapter, the regular wage includes the cash wage only, without deduction on account of facilities provided by the employer.
General information, not legal advice. For your case, ask a lawyer, the Public Attorney's Office (PAO) or the agency.
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