By PNA and U.S. News Agency / Asian

A top labor and employment officer urged employers of the private sector to observe proper pay rules for their workers on the holidays on Aug. 20, Aug. 21 and Aug. 27.

Rosalinda Baldoz, secretary of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), said Aug. 20 is a regular holiday in view of the celebration of Eid’l Fitr, or Feast of Ramadan, while Aug. 21 August is a special non-working day it being Ninoy Aquino Day while Aug. 27 is a regular holiday in commemoration of National Heroes Day.

Baldoz was in the city over the weekend for the inauguration of the new DOLE regional office and to personally promote the DOLE’s child labor-free barangay campaign in Mindanao.

She said the dates were declared holidays pursuant to Proclamation Nos. 295 and 495 issued by President Benigno S. Aquino III on Nov. 24, 2011 and Aug. 13, 2012, respectively.

“I urge our private sector employers to comply with the Labor Advisory on the payment of correct wages and benefits on these holidays. We owe it to our workers, who will be required to report for work and, therefore, must receive the correct wages and benefits,” she said.

Baldoz issued Labor Advisory No. 2, Series of 2012, titled, “On the Payment of Wages on Tuesday, 21 August 2012, Special (Non-Working) Day, and on Monday, 20 and 27, 2012 Regular Holiday, Pursuant to Proclamation No. 295″ and a Question and Answer periodical that provides clear explanation, with illustrative examples of computation, to facilitate proper wage payments for those dates.

Both the Advisory and the Q&A are uploaded in the DOLE website, http://www.dole.gov.ph.