Working on Public Holidays: Know Your Rights

ORANJESTAD (AAN): With public holidays and commemoration days comes the common question: what are your rights if you’re required to work? The Department of Labor Affairs (DAO) provides clarity on compensation across different sectors.

Hospitality, Casino, and Continuous Sectors

For these sectors, a public holiday or commemoration day may be a regular working day. Employees scheduled to work are entitled to 200% of their salary. If they work beyond their regular hours (9 hours for hospitality/casino, 8 hours for continuous sector), the overtime is compensated at 250%.

Shift Work Sectors

Sectors authorized to apply shift work (e.g., kiosks, tour operators, cleaning, recreation, car rentals, and tourist attractions) may schedule employees to work on 6 of the 11 public holidays or commemoration days. The remaining 5 days must be given as rest. Employees working on those 6 days receive 200% pay, and if called in for overtime on the other 5 days, they are entitled to 250% for regular and extra hours.

Other Sectors

For sectors such as supermarkets and general commerce, where public holidays are considered rest days, employees asked to work are entitled to 250% of their salary on an overtime basis.

DAO encourages all employers and employees to maintain accurate records of compensation for work performed on public holidays and commemoration days.