Employment
Labor Code security of tenure, regional wage boards and regulated contracting
The Labor Code gives employees security of tenure: dismissal requires a just or authorised cause and due process. Minimum wages are set regionally by tripartite boards, not nationally, and labour-only contracting is prohibited.
Key rules
- Jurisdiction — DOLE enforces standards; the National Labor Relations Commission hears illegal dismissal and money claims. Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards set wage orders.
Governing law
- Presidential Decree 442Labor Code of the Philippines, 1974
- Republic Act 6727Wage Rationalization Act, 1989
- Republic Act 11210Expanded Maternity Leave Law, 2019
In practice
Just causes cover employee fault such as serious misconduct or gross neglect; authorised causes cover business reasons such as redundancy or closure and carry separation pay of at least half or one month's pay per year of service depending on ground. Procedural due process for just-cause dismissal requires two written notices and a hearing, and failure produces nominal damages even where the cause is valid. Regularisation follows six months of probationary service. Employees receive five days of service incentive leave, a mandatory thirteenth-month pay, and 105 days of paid maternity leave since 2019. Contracting arrangements where the contractor lacks substantial capital are struck down as labour-only, making the principal the direct employer.