It’s that time of the year again! 13th month pay season na at marami sa atin ay sabik na sabik nang mag holiday shopping. Pero parang… once is never enough? Bilang masisipag na empleyado, we often think we deserve more at nangangarap magkaroon ng extra cash para sa iba pang mga bagay para tayo’y handa sa bagong taon.
That’s where our 13th month pay and Christmas bonuses can come in handy. But did you know na ito ay dalawang magkaibang income incentives na binibigay sa mga private workers? Yet are easy to confuse with each other. You might be fortunate enough to receive both lalo na kung nakumpleto mo ang buong taon to get that additional income as a reward para sa pinagpaguran mo.
Though, more often than not, you can only look forward to receiving one of them each year.
“Teka lang, so ibig sabihin ba hindi ako makakatanggap ng 13th month dahil hindi ako nagwork for a full year?” you might ask.
Let’s dive in and find out.
Legal Chu-chu
Ang 13th month pay ay isang government-mandated benefit na naisabatas bilang Presidential Decree No. 851. Whereas the Christmas bonus is an optional arrangement that employees aren’t obligated to provide. Both are intended to help employees enjoy the season of giving, but only the 13th month pay is guaranteed by law.
However, not everyone in the workforce is entitled to 13th month pay. Rank-and-file employees in the private sector and household helpers are the only ones who can enjoy this benefit.
Hindi kasama ang mga contractual workers, freelancers, and those who earn via commission. Sa case naman ng government employees, iba rin ang kanilang incentive arrangements dahil meron silang sariling set of bonuses like the year-end bonus (also called the 14th month pay) and ₱5,000 cash gift included therein.
Para maging eligible sa 13th month, employees must work at least one month in the year. After this, even if their contract is terminated, their employers are required to pay that sum via backpay.
Failure to pay the 13th month bonus is punishable by administrative action by DOLE.
There’s also no need to pay taxes for your 13th month pay as long as the amount doesn’t exceed ₱90,000.
Magkano ba dapat ang matatanggap ko?
13th month pay should be equal to not less than 1/12 of your total basic salary within a calendar year. Employees who have worked 12 months of the calendar year can use the following formula to compute their 13th month pay:
Basta ang rule of thumb ay ang bawat empleyado ay entitled sa 13th month as long as employed sila for at least 1 month. Ang tawag dito ay prorated 13th month salary.
So if you worked less than 12 months of the year, DOLE computes your 13th month pay in a different way.
Here’s an example of how prorated 13th month pay works:
According to the above spreadsheet, the employee’s total basic salary earned was ₱97,500. Since maternity leave should not be included in the computation, she is entitled to a prorated 13th month pay of ₱97,5001/12 = ₱8,125. You’ll notice that this is substantially less than her monthly pay of ₱10,000.
Other things like allowances and overtime pay are not included in this computation.
Entitled ba ang mga kasambahay to 13th month pay?
Oo dahil naisabatas na ito sa The Domestic Workers Act o Batas Kasambahay, R.A. 10361. Sinasabi doon na ang mga household helpers ay dapat makatanggap ng mga mandatory benefits as other private sector workers. However, family drivers, service providers, and those who work on a sporadic basis are not included.
How to make the most of my 13th month pay?
Why, by using Lista Philippines, of course!
While Lista recommends saving the extra money for a rainy day, we know how liberating it is to spend for the happiness of others.
But there’s no reason why we can’t spend responsibly. Huwag natin ipagkait ang ating sariling kaligayahan if we can afford to treat ourselves naman.
With Lista’s brand new personal budget feature, you can keep the jolly vibes all throughout Christmas and well into the New Year!