Indefinite transfer and "24 and on-call duty"

Hi Atty,

Good day! I would like to seek for your advice on the following:

1. I have been transferred from our sales office in Manila (main office is in Negros) to our customer's site in the province. We have a consignment contract with the customer for 1 year but it is renewable. The assignment did not specify if it is temporary or permanent assignment. But, since it is based on consignment contract with the customer, I may say it is a indefinite assignment. It has been 4 years since I was assigned here. The problem now is that I was not included in the NCR wage increase in July 2010. Now my rate is less than the minimum rate for NCR. Company reason is that I am now working in the province. Is this right? Please advice.

2. We also have a memorandum stating that we are not allowed to overtime. However, it is also stated in the memo that we are on a 24 hours on-call. The customer operation requires us to work 24/7. We are 3 here in the customer site and we decided to have a 2 shift, 2 in the morning (12 hours) and 1 in the evening (12 hours). This is so because there are a lot of work in the morning that 1 person could not do alone. The management has been aware of this shifting schedules and we have been complaining about this overtime for months. But, we have not received any positive feedback from them. Are they obliged to pay us overtime pay? Please help. Thanks a lot in advance.

Regards,

HB

considering your premise

1.when you are transfered to a provincial assignment, definitely you are displaced from your family in manila, the employer should give you a suitable housing and preferably an allowance for this one. Considering that you were hired in Manila and started working for the company in NCR, you should be paid according to the NCR rate. Now your company used its prerogative to transfer or reassign you to the province they can not reduce your present salary you are receiving because it is diminution of wages which is illegal.

2.if a memo was issued stating that you are not allowed to render overtime and you have been asked to work 12 hours it will be illegal. under the law you should only be rendering work for 8 hours and in excess of the 8 hours should be given an overtime premium.

I suggest you file a complaint before the regional office of NLRC in the province where you are assigned. try to have your payslip and a photocopy of your time record just in case you will be asked to prove your claim.

Hi Atty,

Thank you for your response. In the first query, when I was assigned in the province in 2006, I carry the rate of NCR. There was an NCR wage increase in 2006, 2007 and 2008 while I am already in the province and I was still given that increase. Comes July 2010 NCR increase, I no longer included in the increase. Company says they realized that I should have a provincial rate so they no longer included me in the recent increase. Is can we still consider that as diminution of benefit?
For the 2nd query, we do not have any time card in the office. I only start to have time card last December 2010 as per advice from my brother. But this time card is only a sort of a logbook and I am just the one who log-in and out from it. Can the company deny to pay the overtime pay since they already provided a memo on that even if they are aware of the shifting schedule?
Thanks.