Relevant labor Aspect of Domestic workers

• Published date: 01 November 2022
• Author: Sophia A. Lee de Siu
• Law Firm: Blogs Alemán, Cordero, Galindo & Lee

Domestic workers are considered the employees

that provide cleaning, assistance, or other servi-

ces specif‌ic to a person’s home or family mem-

bers on a regular and continuous basis.

The working conditions of domestic workers are

regulated in the chapter on Special Contracts

of the Labor Code, starting from article 230.

Anything not explicitly addressed by these spe-

cial standards is subject to the regulations appli-

cable to all workers in general, contained in the

remaining articles of the Labor Code.

The fundamental aspects in domestic work are:

1. Work schedule: Domestic workers are not sub-

ject to a work schedule. While workers who

provide services for a private company have an

ordinary working day of a maximum of eight

(8) hours in the day shift, the Labor Code does

not establish a maximum number of service

hours per day for domestic workers. Howe-

ver, it mandates a rest time of at least nine

continuous hours, from 9:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.,

with a weekly rest of minimum one (1) full day.

2. Work on holidays or national mourning:

when a domestic worker provides his servi-

ces on national holiday or mourning, is remu-

nerated with a surcharge of 100% on his dai-

ly wage, unlike an employee who works for

a private company on a national holiday or

national mourning whose remuneration in-

cludes a surcharge of 150% on his daily salary.

3. Termination: The termination of every wor-

ker, domestic or not, is considered unjus-

tif‌ied and the employer bears the burden

of proving the existence of a justif‌ied rea-

son for dismissal. According to the law, any

verbal dismissal is considered unjustif‌ied.

Domestic workers can be terminated without

cause as long as the employer pays appropriate

compensation, which consists in a severance.

If the termination is made citing one of the

justif‌ied causes provided in article 213 of

the Labor Code, the employer must deli-

ver a termination letter detailing the date

and facts on which the termination is based.

4. Employment Benef‌its– Acquired Rights: The

domestic worker has the right to the same

employee benef‌its as a private sector worker.

Which are:

- Seniority

- Thirteen-month bonus

- Vacations .

It is important to note that these benef‌its

must be paid regardless of the immigration

status of the domestic worker. I suggest that,

at the time of paying the acquired rights, a

Visita: www.focusalcogal.com

Relevant labor Aspect

of Domestic workers

Autor: Sophia A. Lee de Siu lawyer in Alcogal