Is Charter Day Double Pay? What is the Special (Non-Working) Holiday Pay Rule 

You may be wondering if a charter day holiday is declared for a city or province, do you get something like a double pay if you come to work? 

Every year, cities and provinces in the Philippines celebrate charter day or the founding anniversary of the place and usually there is no work for this day as this is declared as a special non-working holiday by Malacanang. You can monitor announcements like this on the Official Gazette.  

The Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines is a government website administered by the Office of the President of the Philippines. This site contains proclamations like special non-working holidays for fiestas, festivals, special events celebrations, and charter days. You can also find links to different government agencies, executive issuances, publication of Republic Acts, and a lot more in the Official Gazette.  

Paskong Pinoy linked above the page where the holiday proclamations such as charter day are listed.  

Example of charter days and special events holidays; this happens every year and are declared a local public holiday, particularly as a Special (Non-Working) Holiday: 

March 1 for Muntinlupa City of Charter Day 

March 16 for Charter of Davao City 

April 7 for the Mountain Province Founding Anniversary 

May 20 for the Founding Anniversary of the Municipality of Gattaran, Province of Cagayan 

June 11 for Rizal Province Founding Anniversary 

June 17 for City Charter of Lapu Lapu City, Cebu 

June 21 for Charter Day of Bayugan, Agusan del Sur and Balete, Batangas 

June 24 for Manila Day or the City of Manila Founding Anniversary 

July 1 for Tagbilaran City Charter Day, Bohol 

July 19 for Laoag Charter Day, Ilocos Norte 

August 2 for Butuan City, Agusan del Norte Charter Anniversary 

August 6 for the Charter Anniversary of Cebu Province 

August 13 for the City of Tayabas, Quezon for the Anniversary of its independence from Spanish rule 

August 13 for the Founding Anniversary of the Municipality of Bombon, Camarines Sur 

August 22 for the Municipality of Liloy, Zamboanga del Norte Founding Anniversary 

August 25 for the Iloilo Charter Day 

October 16 for the Calbayog City Charter Day in Samar 

December 8 for Taguig City Charter Day 

Important: 

Take note that there are instances when the province’s governor or the city’s mayor will request the Office of the President to declare another day as the special (non-working) holiday.  

Example: This 2024, the governor of the Mountain Province requested the President to move the Special (Non-Working) Holiday to April 8, 2024, a Monday. The actual date of the founding anniversary of said province is April 7, a Sunday.  The request was granted in a proclamation and signed by the Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, by authority of the President.  

DOLE Special (Non-working) Holiday pay rules, applicable to charter day and founding anniversary 

The Department of Labour and Employment or DOLE released Labour Advisory No. 27, Series of 2023 which provides guidelines regarding payment of wages for regular holidays and special (non-working) day for the year 2024. Before the end of this year, DOLE is expected to release another labour advisory to cover the 2025 holiday proclamations. 

This directive states that employees who will be working during a Special (Non-working) Holiday like a charter day or founding anniversary, which was proclaimed as such by Malacanang, will receive an additional 30 percent of their basic wage on the first eight hours.  

This DOLE special non-working holiday pay rules must be observed by all employers and companies, otherwise a case can be filed against the erring entity.  

If you are an employee and you do not work on this day, there is no pay. The “No Work, No Pay” rule will be observed, unless there is a favorable company policy, practice, or collective bargaining agreement granting payment on a special day. 

But if you work, you will earn an additional 30% of your basic daily pay for the first 8 hours of rendered work (basic wage x 130%).  

Example: You are based in Manila with basic daily wage of P610 (the minimum wage), you worked 8 hours during the charter day of your province.  

Total pay for the day = P610 basic wage x 130% = P793 

If you work overtime, you shall be paid an additional 30 percent of the hourly rate on the said day (hourly rate of the basic wage x 130% x 130% x number of hours worked). 

Example: You are based in Cebu with daily basic wage of P468, you worked 13 hours during Cebu Province Charter Day. This is how much you will earn, but first let’s get the hourly rate: 

Hourly rate: P468 basic wage / 8 hours = P58.50 per hour 

Total pay for the day =P58.50 hourly rate x 130% x 130% x 13 hours = P1,285.26 

Other Special (Non-working) Holiday Pay Rules 

If an employee works on a special day that also falls on a rest day, the employer shall pay an additional 50 percent of the basic wage on the first eight hours of work (basic wage x 150%). 

For overtime work on a special day that also falls on the employee’s rest day, workers shall be paid an additional 30 percent of their hourly rate on the said day (hourly rate of the basic wage x 150% x 130% x number of hours worked). 

To Work or Not To Work 

Here in Paskong Pinoy, we advocate work-life balance so if you can and if it fits your circumstances, do something extra special for yourself or family on Charter Days, Founding Anniversaries, Festival Days, Fiesta Days, Special Events Commemoration, which are proclaimed by Malacanang as a Special (non-working) holiday. Go on a trip or have a picnic for free in a public park, or explore museums, or just stay at home and bond with your loved ones. 

But if your employer requires you to render work or you need the extra pay, go and report to work with a happy heart.  

You may want to also check this post about Regular Holiday Pay Rules.

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