A full-spectrum practitioner’s guide—status, security of tenure, due process, remedies, and strategy from hire to cessation

I. Who is a “reliever employee”?

In practice, a reliever is hired to temporarily substitute for a regular employee who is on leave, seconded, suspended, ill, or otherwise absent, or to backfill a temporary vacancy. Relievers are often engaged on a fixed-term or co-terminous basis and may be paid hourly/daily. They can be hired directly or via a legitimate job contractor.

Three guardrails determine lawful reliever arrangements:

Clarity of purpose and term – the contract must expressly state that the engagement is to substitute [named] regular employee and is co-terminous with that person’s return or until a stated end date, whichever is earlier.
Good faith – the arrangement cannot be used to defeat security of tenure (e.g., cycling relievers permanently for indispensable roles).
Consistency – actual deployment must match the stated purpose (assigning a “reliever” to unrelated permanent tasks is a red flag).

Security of tenure applies to all employees—regular, probationary, project, seasonal, fixed-term, or reliever. The difference lies in when the employment naturally ends and what process is due.

II. When a reliever’s employment lawfully ends without “dismissal”

A reliever’s stint validly ends (and is not a dismissal) if:

The named incumbent returns from leave, and the reliever’s written contract explicitly states co-terminous status; or
The fixed term lapses per a bona fide fixed-term contract freely and knowingly agreed, not used to circumvent tenure; or
The temporary vacancy ceases (e.g., the position is filled permanently following a legitimate recruitment).

No separation pay is due upon a valid natural expiration of a reliever contract, absent a company policy/CBA granting it. Issue a Final Pay and Certificate of Employment promptly.

If the employer keeps the reliever working beyond the return of the incumbent or repeatedly rehires the worker in a way that shows the job is necessary and desirable to the business, the reliever can acquire regular status and enjoy full illegal-dismissal protections.

III. When termination is a “dismissal” (and can be illegal)

Termination of a reliever before the agreed expiry/co-terminous trigger, or non-renewal used as a pretext to punish or avoid tenure, is dismissal. It is illegal if the employer fails to establish:

a just cause (e.g., serious misconduct, willful disobedience, gross neglect, fraud/breach of trust, crime against employer/co-worker, analogous causes) and compliance with due process; or
an authorized cause (e.g., redundancy, retrenchment, closure, disease) with 30-day written notice to both employee and DOLE and payment of separation pay at statutory rates; and
where applicable, contractual grounds clearly invoked in good faith (e.g., the named incumbent actually returned).

Burden of proof lies with the employer. If the employer denies dismissal, the worker must first prove fact of dismissal (including constructive dismissal—e.g., sudden demotion, pay cuts, intolerable conditions).

IV. Procedural due process for relievers

A. For just-cause dismissal (disciplinary)

First written notice: specify the charge(s), facts, and rule violated; give reasonable opportunity (commonly at least 5 calendar days) to explain.
Hearing or conference: allow the employee to defend, present evidence, and respond.
Second written notice: state the decision and reasons.

Failure to observe this, even with valid cause, yields nominal damages (disciplinary-cause benchmark: ₱30,000), and can taint the dismissal.

B. For authorized-cause termination (economic/health)

30-day prior notice to employee and DOLE;
Separation pay: typically ½ month per year of service (retrenchment/closure) or 1 month per year (redundancy), subject to statutory floors;
Disease: supported by a competent public health authority certification and proof of inability to reassign.

Ending a reliever early due to the incumbent’s return is not an authorized cause—it’s a contract-expiry event. If the employer claims “return of incumbent”, it must prove the return (or permanent fill) and the co-terminous clause.

V. Special issues unique to relievers

Named-person substitution: Strongest defense is a contract that identifies the employee being relieved and the specific leave (maternity, SL, SLB, suspension, etc.).
Multiple renewals: Repeated piecemeal contracts for core tasks suggest regularization; non-renewal then risks being illegal dismissal.
Misdirected deployment: Assigning a reliever long-term to different posts (not tied to any absence) undermines fixed-term legitimacy.
Early cut-off for performance: Must follow two-notice disciplinary process; “at will” termination is void.
Agency-deployed relievers: If the contractor is labor-only, the principal becomes the employer and is solidarily liable for illegal dismissal, wages, and benefits.
Return not proven: If the “incumbent return” is unsubstantiated, the cutoff is dismissal, not natural expiry.

VI. What a reliever is entitled to during the stint

Minimum wage and overtime/night/rest-day/holiday pay rules;
13th-month pay (rank-and-file), pro-rated;
SIL (5 days) once total service reaches 1 year (even across continuous service with the same employer);
SSS, PhilHealth, Pag-IBIG coverage and remittances from day one;
OSH protections, PPE, and training;
Non-diminution and equal pay for equal work (lawful differentials must be job-based, not status-based).

VII. Remedies if a reliever is illegally dismissed

Reinstatement to the former position without loss of seniority; if the term would have expired, reinstatement may be moot but does not erase other reliefs.
Full backwages from dismissal until actual reinstatement; for time-bound relievers, backwages are typically capped at the unexpired portion of the last valid term, unless the worker had, by law or fact, become regular.
Separation pay in lieu of reinstatement (e.g., position abolished, strained relations), plus backwages.
Nominal damages for due-process breach (even when cause exists).
Moral and exemplary damages upon proof of bad faith or oppressive conduct.
Attorney’s fees (commonly 10%) when the worker is compelled to litigate.
Money claims (overtime, underpayment, 13th month, SIL commutation, final pay).

VIII. Filing roadmap (fast but thorough)

SEnA (Single-Entry Approach) at DOLE: mandatory conciliation-mediation.
Labor Arbiter (NLRC) complaint: illegal dismissal + money claims; request payroll reinstatement (or actual reinstatement).
Position papers & evidence: contracts, assignment orders, timekeeping, payslips, memos, proof (or absence) of incumbent’s return, notices given (or not given).
Appeal to the NLRC Commission; thereafter Rule 65 petition to the Court of Appeals; then possible review by the Supreme Court.
Execution: reinstatement/backwages are immediately executory in certain stages; move for writ of execution.

Prescriptive periods:

Illegal dismissal action: 4 years (injury to rights).
Money claims: 3 years from accrual.
Unfair labor practice (if alleged): 1 year.

IX. Evidence checklist (for employees and counsel)

Reliever contract(s) showing terms, named incumbent, and duration; all renewals.
Deployment logs: duty rosters, DTRs, supervisor chats, emails.
Notices (first/second) or proof they were never served.
Proof of incumbent’s return (or lack thereof): return-to-work orders, memos, HRIS screenshots.
Payroll: payslips, bank credits, 13th-month computations; final pay and COE (if issued).
Comparators: assignments showing the reliever handled core tasks over time.
Communications evidencing constructive dismissal (e.g., demotions, pay cuts, forced resignation).

X. Employer compliance tips (to avoid illegal-dismissal exposure)

Draft reliever contracts that (a) name the incumbent, (b) state co-terminous triggers with a hard end date, and (c) explain that renewal is not assured.
Document the incumbent’s return (return-to-work memo) and handover; issue a notice of contract expiry on the day the trigger occurs.
If ending early for performance/misconduct, follow the two-notice rule and keep records.
Do not cycle relievers indefinitely for core operations—regularize where warranted.
For contractor-deployed relievers, audit the contractor’s DOLE registration, wages, and remittances; include solidary-liability mitigation clauses.

XI. Frequently encountered scenarios

Reliever kept three months after the incumbent returned.
- Presumption: continued need beyond trigger; potential regularization. A later cutoff may be illegal if not justified and procedurally proper.
Non-renewal after five successive reliever contracts covering the same post.
- Indicates necessity and desirability; worker can claim regular status and illegal dismissal.
Reliever terminated mid-term for “attitude problem” with no notices.
- Illegal dismissal for lack of just cause proof and due process; backwages up to unexpired term (or beyond if regular).
Return of incumbent cited, but that person actually resigned.
- Pretext; termination is a dismissal requiring cause and process—likely illegal.
Agency reliever deployed to principal, then principal ends assignment.
- If labor-only contracting, principal is employer; even if legitimate contracting, security of tenure still protects against constructive dismissal.

XII. Computation snapshots

Backwages (time-bound): Daily rate × workdays remaining in unexpired term, plus proportionate 13th-month; add COLA where applicable.
Separation pay in lieu of reinstatement (if regularized): Often 1 month pay per year of service (as equitable relief ordered by tribunals), separate from statutory authorized-cause separations.
Nominal damages for due-process breach: Benchmarks: ₱30,000 (disciplinary) or ₱50,000 (authorized-cause termination without proper notices).

(Exact figures depend on prevailing jurisprudential calibrations and case facts.)

XIII. Bottom line

A reliever setup is lawful only when genuinely temporary, transparently documented, and implemented in good faith. The moment an employer cuts off early, cycles relievers to mask permanent needs, or skips due process, the risk shifts to illegal dismissal—with backwages, reinstatement or separation pay, and damages on the table. Employees should keep contracts and duty records, act within prescriptive periods, and pursue the SEnA → NLRC route swiftly; employers should paper the purpose, prove the trigger, and follow process every single time.