Legal Maximum Weekly Working Hours under the Philippine Labor Code: A Complete Guide

1) The big picture

Under Philippine law, the normal hours of work are eight (8) hours a day. The Labor Code does not fix a single, across-the-board weekly cap; instead, the default schedule in many establishments is six (6) days of eight hours (≈ 48 hours/week), with one rest day of at least 24 consecutive hours every seven days. Work beyond eight (8) hours in a day is overtime and must be paid the required premium. Employers and employees may also adopt lawful flexible schedules (e.g., compressed workweek, reduced workdays) subject to strict conditions.

2) Who is covered—and who is not

Covered (hours-of-work rules apply)

Most rank-and-file employees in the private sector.

Not covered (exempt from the Labor Code’s hours-of-work chapter)

Managerial employees and officers whose primary duty is management and who customarily exercise discretion.
Field personnel whose time and performance are unsupervised (e.g., certain outside sales roles).
Members of the employer’s immediate family who are dependent on the employer for support.
Domestic workers (kasambahay)—governed by a special law (see §11).
Persons in the personal service of another.
Workers paid by results (piece-rate, task or commission basis) when their actual hours cannot be determined with reasonable certainty (but note: they may still be entitled to other monetary benefits if time can be tracked).

Tip: If an employee is misclassified as exempt, the company can be liable for back wages, overtime premiums, and penalties.

3) The default daily cap: 8 hours

Normal work day: up to 8 hours, exclusive of meal periods.
Meal break: at least 60 minutes, generally unpaid. In specific operations where a shorter meal period (not less than 20 minutes) is permitted, that shortened break is paid.
Short rest breaks (coffee/bio breaks) of short duration are usually paid as part of working time.

4) Weekly hours and the statutory rest day

Rest day: at least 24 consecutive hours after six consecutive days of work, or one day rest in every seven-day period.
Scheduling: The employer ordinarily determines the rest day, with due regard to employee religious preferences and operational requirements.
Work on a rest day: allowed but subject to rest-day premiums and, where applicable, overtime premiums (see §6).

Practical baseline: In a six-day operation, the “normal” week is 48 hours (6 × 8), not counting meal periods. Some businesses lawfully operate on five days (≈ 40 hours).

5) Overtime, night work, and special hour-related pay

A. Overtime (OT)

Trigger: Work beyond 8 hours in a day.
Premium (ordinary working day): +25% of the employee’s hourly rate for the OT hours (i.e., 125% of the hourly rate).
OT on rest day, special day, or regular holiday: +30% on top of the applicable day premium for those hours. (In effect, OT worked on already-premium days commands a higher total rate.)

B. Night Shift Differential (NSD)

Coverage: Work performed between 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.
Premium: at least +10% of the regular hourly rate for each hour of night work (separate from OT and day premiums).

Stacking rule of thumb: Compute the day premium first (e.g., rest day or holiday pay), then apply the OT premium to the resulting hourly rate; NSD is computed independently and added.

6) Rest days, special days, and holidays: premium matrix (quick view)

Ordinary day, within 8 hours: 100% (no premium).
Ordinary day, OT hours: 125% of hourly rate for OT hours.
Rest day, within 8 hours: 130% (rest-day premium).
Rest day, OT hours: 130% × 130%? No—don’t multiply premiums. The standard rule is rest-day rate for the first 8 hours (130%); beyond 8 hours, apply an additional 30% of the rest-day hourly rate for the OT hours (i.e., 169% effective for those OT hours).
Special non-working day / Regular holiday: Use the applicable special-day or holiday base (which may be 130% or 200% depending on the holiday type and reporting status), then apply OT (+30%) to the adjusted hourly rate for work beyond 8 hours, and add NSD if the hours fall between 10 p.m.–6 a.m.

(Exact holiday rules depend on whether the day is “special” vs “regular,” whether the employee reports to work, and whether it falls on a rest day.)

7) Flexible work arrangements and the “weekly cap” question

The Labor Code’s focus is daily—not weekly—limits. However, modern practice allows Flexible Work Arrangements (FWAs) to balance productivity and worker welfare:

A. Compressed Workweek (CWW)

Concept: Reduce the number of workdays by increasing daily hours (often up to 12 hours/day, without OT for the 9th–12th hours), to maintain roughly the same weekly total.
Conditions (typical):
- Voluntary agreement (free and informed consent) with majority of affected employees or through the union.
- No diminution of benefits (e.g., no reduction of equivalent weekly/monthly pay).
- Written policy communicated to employees; notice to DOLE as required.
- Working conditions remain humane and safe (OSH compliance).
Overtime in CWW: Hours beyond the agreed daily limit (often 12) still attract OT. Within the agreed limit, the excess over eight is not considered OT if the CWW is validly implemented.

B. Reduced Workdays or Workhours

Sometimes adopted (with employee consent) to avoid retrenchment during downturns. Pay may be pro-rated, but minimum-wage and wage-order rules continue to apply.

C. Flexitime / Gliding Schedules

Employees complete the daily 8 hours but have flexibility on start/end times within core operational hours.

Key point: FWAs do not erase the daily 8-hour default unless lawfully implemented; otherwise, anything over 8 hours/day is OT even if the total weekly hours do not exceed 48.

8) Special sectors and exceptions

A. Health personnel

Certain health personnel in hospitals/clinics (e.g., those above specified bed capacities or located in large cities) are subject to a 40-hour workweek regime under special statutes/regulations. Work beyond 40 hours/week may require additional compensation (often a 30% premium for work on the sixth day), separate from the standard OT rules. Always verify the facility’s classification and headcount/bed-capacity thresholds.

B. BPO/24×7 operations

Round-the-clock operations are lawful provided NSD, OT, and rest-day rules are observed, and employees still receive one rest day in every seven days.

C. Seafarers, construction, and other industries

Work-time rules may be supplemented by special laws, standard employment contracts, or project-based regulations. Check the governing instrument for industry-specific hour caps or premiums.

9) Hours tracking, waiting time, and travel time

Principal activities (actual work) are hours worked.
Waiting/idle time is hours worked if the employee is engaged to wait (e.g., on stand-by at the worksite) but not if waiting to be engaged.
On-call at the employer’s premises or where constraints limit personal pursuits is usually hours worked; unrestricted on-call from home typically is not.
Travel time:
- Home-to-work commute: not hours worked.
- Travel during the workday (between job sites, employer-mandated trips): hours worked.
- Overnight travel: the portion that cuts across the employee’s regular working hours is generally compensable, even on non-working days.

10) Enforcement, records, and compliance

Timekeeping: Employers must keep accurate daily time records (in/out) for each employee.
Payroll transparency: Payslips should itemize basic pay, OT, NSD, rest-day/holiday premiums, and deductions.
Prohibitions:
- Offsetting OT with informal “time off” is not a substitute for paying statutory OT premiums unless a lawful time-off scheme is clearly allowed by regulation/collective agreement.
- Waivers of statutory OT/NSD/rest-day premiums are generally invalid.
Penalties: Non-compliance can result in money claims, administrative fines, and, in aggravated cases, criminal liability.

11) Special note on domestic workers (Kasambahay)

Domestic workers are governed by a separate statute (Batas Kasambahay). Key differences include:

Daily rest: at least 8 hours.
Weekly rest day: at least 24 consecutive hours.
Additional rules address stand-by time, lodging, and privacy, rather than a strict 8-hour cap. OT/NSD frameworks for kasambahay differ from the Labor Code model; consult the special law’s implementing rules.

12) Frequently misunderstood points

“Weekly maximum is 48 hours.” Not exactly. The law fixes a daily norm (8 hours). Many workplaces run six days, producing a 48-hour week, but the Code does not impose a hard universal weekly cap; it requires a weekly rest day and OT premiums per day.
“If I work only four 10-hour days (40 hours total), there’s no OT.” False unless a valid compressed workweek is in place. Without it, hours beyond 8/day are OT, even if the week totals 40.
“Shortening the meal break to 30 minutes saves time with no pay effect.” A shortened break is generally compensable working time unless an express exception applies.
“An employee can waive OT pay.” No. Statutory premiums are mandatory.

13) Computation examples

A. Ordinary day with overtime and night work

Basic hourly rate: ₱100
Worked: 9:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m. (10 hours total, 1-hour meal break → 9 hours worked)
OT: 1 hour (beyond 8) at 125% → ₱125
Regular 8 hours: 8 × ₱100 = ₱800
Total (no night work): ₱925

If the last hour fell 10:00–11:00 p.m., add NSD 10% on that hour’s regular rate (₱10), plus still compute OT at 125% where applicable; NSD is added on top.

B. Rest day work, with overtime

Hourly rate: ₱100
8 hours on rest day: 130% → 8 × ₱130 = ₱1,040
2 OT hours on rest day: +30% of rest-day hourly rate (₱130) → ₱130 × 1.30 = ₱169 per OT hour → 2 × ₱169 = ₱338
Total: ₱1,378 (excluding any NSD)

14) Employer checklist (do this)

Adopt written schedules stating daily hours, meal periods, and rest-day assignment.
Track time accurately; preserve DTRs/logs for audits and complaints.
Price the premiums correctly (OT, rest day, special/regular holiday, NSD).
Implement FWAs (e.g., CWW) only with proper documentation, consent, and DOLE notice.
Audit special groups (health personnel, BPO night workers, project-based employees) for sector-specific rules.
Train supervisors on when “waiting time,” travel, and on-call hours are compensable.

15) Key takeaways

The daily ceiling is 8 hours; overtime kicks in after eight, per day.
A weekly rest day (24 consecutive hours) is mandatory.
Many workplaces run ≈48 hours/week (six 8-hour days), but there is no single, strict weekly cap in the Labor Code—compliance hinges on daily limits and premiums.
Compressed workweeks and other FWAs are lawful only if properly agreed, documented, and compliant; otherwise, excess hours over eight are OT.
Night work, rest day, and holiday rules stack; compute carefully.
Misclassification and poor timekeeping are the most common—and costly—compliance pitfalls.

Final note

This article synthesizes the prevailing statutory framework and common implementing practices. For specific workplaces (e.g., hospitals, security agencies, BPOs, project sites) or unusual schedules (split shifts, staggered weeks), review the applicable rules, wage orders, and any special laws or regulations, and document your arrangements carefully.