What Holiday is the first 4 days in April

waytogo · Mar 30, 2010

My housekeeper informed me that April 1-4 are paid holidays for her and she won't be coming to work. If I wish her to work, she gets paid double.
Not a problem with this but I can't find any information on the internet and the holidays that are listed for the Dominican Republic, none in April.
She is new and started work on March 1st so I am curious if what she is telling me is truthful. Thanks for the help.

juanita · Mar 30, 2010

Semana Santa! Normaly workers get off at noon on the 1st.
:: Secretaria de Estado de Trabajo ::

Eddy · Mar 30, 2010

waytogo said:
My housekeeper informed me that April 1-4 are paid holidays for her and she won't be coming to work. If I wish her to work, she gets paid double.
Not a problem with this but I can't find any information on the internet and the holidays that are listed for the Dominican Republic, none in April.
She is new and started work on March 1st so I am curious if what she is telling me is truthful. Thanks for the help.

She sounds like trouble in the making. Replace her ASAP

MrMike · Mar 30, 2010

Seems to me like Good Friday is the only actual paid holiday. The others are just regular days, albeit most people will be on the beach partying, at least in their minds.

I am letting my guys go on Thursday and don't expect to see them till Monday, and wont be surprised if most of them are "sick with the flu" for most of the morning.

I could probably force them to stay and "work", but the results would be about what you'd expect form people who would rather be on the beach.

Since all my guys are commission only I don't have to worry about the double pay thing, but if they were salaried I would be paying their salaries for any work done on Friday, and the other days I would have to stay open and allow them to work if they wanted to or else pay the salary.

But I agree with Eddy, of your maid is trying to take advantage and give you false information to make extra money after only a month on the job then its time to start looking elsewhere.

MrMike · Mar 30, 2010

Let me add that while it may not be law, it is traditional to give people these days off, so your maid may not be trying to swindle you, just "optimistic" about how much she is going to get paid.

bachata · Mar 30, 2010

Today should be a big holiday

From Wiki:
The Battle of March 30 (Battle of Santiago), was the second major battle of the Dominican War of Independence and was fought on March 30, 1844, at Santiago de los Caballeros, Santiago Province. A force of some 500 Dominican troops, a portion of the Army of The North, led by General Jos? Mar?a Imbert, defeated an outnumbering force of 10,000 troops of the Haitian Army led by General Jean-Louis Pierrot.

JJ

AlterEgo · Mar 30, 2010

Eddy said:
She sounds like trouble in the making. Replace her ASAP

I hate to say this, but I agree. If she was so religious that she needed the days off, she wouldn't even consider working. The fact that she asked for double wage tells me she's gouging you - it's not about being a Christian during Holy Week.

It's supposed to be a somber week leading up to Easter, but I've spent too many Semana Santas in DR. For most it's an excuse to go to the beach and party. When I was a kid, we visited 3 different churches on Good Friday [Italian tradition]. Many Latinos visit 7. I haven't met one Dominican who does that, but it might just be the company I keep. :ermm:

AE

Eddy · Mar 30, 2010

windeguy said:
I will reserve comment on if your housekeeper is trouble based upon her taking holidays to which she is entitled.

But she is not entitled. The only RED day as per the calendar is Friday. We are closed Friday but open Saturday "Regular schedule and regular pay." I would immediately FIRE an employee with one month's service who would try to pull that crap with me.

Hillbilly · Mar 30, 2010

I have to agree:
1) Household help does not fall under normal labor laws.
2) She is full of sh!t
3) If you want her to work during the week tell her so and tell her no extra pay except on Friday.
4) And start looking for someone else. You can kick her out with no severance no nothing. Do it now. Or you will live to regret it.

Did you hire her under a company name? (this just came to me). If you did, fire her now, before it is too late. And if she works on Friday do pay her double, but fire her next week. The company thing complicates things. You live in a company house, therefore you represent the company, therefore she is a company hire and therefore eligible under the labor laws for social security, national health care, health insurance the whole rigamarole...at least her lawyer will see it this way when they take you to court for violations of the labor laws...and fire her before she becomes pregnant or "sick" and gets letters to prove it and will therefore be "unfirable"...

Domestic help does not fall under normal labor laws...I repeat.

HB
HB

waytogo · Mar 30, 2010

After confronting her with the info I received from everyone here, she said she had made a mistake and is expecting only this Friday as a paid holiday day. I have known this woman for 4 years and have never known her to lie to anyone we both know about anything. She has a 4 year old daughter and really needs this job. I pay her excellent wages with 1/2 the hours per week she worked at her previous job. 66 hours per week before and 33 for me and I doubled her wages. She quit that job to come work for me. I want to believe it was a mistake because she loves working here.
And before everyone says why did you double her pay, my only answer can be, I would have felt very guilty seeing her barely survive and I can afford it.

bigbird · Mar 30, 2010

waytogo said:
.........And before everyone says why did you double her pay, my only answer can be, I would have felt very guilty seeing her barely survive and I can afford it.

That's nice...............

MrMike · Mar 31, 2010

Well, all I am gonna say is that in this country, NO KINDNESS GOES UNPUNISHED.

But that doesn't stop me, so I cant blame you if it doesn't stop you either.

As long as you are aware that these good deeds will eventually bite you in the ass, enjoy them as much as you can.

waytogo · Mar 31, 2010

MrMike said:
Well, all I am gonna say is that in this country, NO KINDNESS GOES UNPUNISHED.

But that doesn't stop me, so I cant blame you if it doesn't stop you either.

As long as you are aware that these good deeds will eventually bite you in the ass, enjoy them as much as you can.

Well, from past experience, I have to agree with you.
Hard to teach an old dog new tricks.

SantiagoDR · Mar 31, 2010

MrMike said:
Well, all I am gonna say is that in this country, NO KINDNESS GOES UNPUNISHED.

But that doesn't stop me, so I cant blame you if it doesn't stop you either.

As long as you are aware that these good deeds will eventually bite you in the ass, enjoy them as much as you can.

Let's see now.....

She is Dominican, has previous work experience as a housekeeper and therefore knows what the holidays are.

You cut her hours in half, thus you doubled her hourly rate.
You doubled her pay, thus now her hourly rate has quadrupled.

Yet she has the nerve to try to take you on the Easter Holiday.

Hell, after all you did for her, she should volunteer to work the Holiday free, for you being such a great person to her.

I see in my Crystal Ball

Trouble Ahead

SantiagoDR · Apr 2, 2010

waytogo said:
........ I am probably moving to Sosua in July so I will .......

So what happens to your housekeeper in July when she has to go back to regular Dominican pay? Are you taking her with you?

waytogo said:
..... And before everyone says why did you double her pay, my only answer can be, I would have felt very guilty seeing her barely survive and I can afford it.

It will be much harder on her because now she will be accustomed to short hours and a salary that only an an ex-pat would pay her.

Don

Lambada · Apr 2, 2010

A different example: our Mercedes elected to work today although obviously she was given the choice not to. I wasn't certain whether conchos would be double fare today (like Xmas/New Year) and neither was she, so yesterday I gave her double fare for today & because I didn't have the exact money I gave her a RD$500 note. Today when she arrived she told me there were few conchos but normal fare applied & she brought the change. No, of course I didn't take it. Just wanted to post about a very honest maid who never ever tries to use the law to her benefit and as a result benefits far more.

She has been with us 15+ years.

ExtremeR · Apr 2, 2010

Eddy said:
But she is not entitled. The only RED day as per the calendar is Friday. We are closed Friday but open Saturday "Regular schedule and regular pay." I would immediately FIRE an employee with one month's service who would try to pull that crap with me.

If you try to do that with a maid you will have La Secretaria de Trabajo all over you, stop with the only RED day in the calendar crap. Semana Santa is from noon Thursday until Monday. Remember guys you are in the DR, not in the USA or Europe.

ExtremeR · Apr 2, 2010

SantiagoDR said:
So what happens to your housekeeper in July when she has to go back to regular Dominican pay? Are you taking her with you?

It will be much harder on her because now she will be accustomed to short hours and a salary that only an an ex-pat would pay her.

Don

That's not fair. So if for example I get a good above average paying job but the company plans to move next year to another country should they lower my salary so I can become "accustomed" of getting paid average wages when they leave the country?

You have to treat maids very carefully, yeah they can take advantage of you if you let them, but also remember this are people who are barely surviving, working to eat and nothing else. So if you can afford to drop them a few more pennies do it.

In the DR our long-time maid left for better pay, and we at first god mad, but later understood that an extra RD$1000 means one more bag of rice, beans and some meat, so we understood and stopped being mad. She eventually returned, we gave her a raise and everybody's happy. Honest maids are REALLY valuable in the DR, if you have one, keep it.

waytogo · Apr 2, 2010

Ok, this is the situation, Our housekeeper/cook has a long time boyfriend. 6 weeks ago he and his brother left the D.R. with a Mexican that tried to smuggle them into the U.S. via Mexico. First Panama and up Central America, making there way to New York. We all figured if he made it he would never come back for her. He's 24 and her children are not his. I tried to talk them out of it telling them to travel through Mexico would be extremely dangerous and I thought I succeeded. I was told they left after the fact. I gave her the job because she no longer had his income to help and I paid her more to take up the slack. Low and Behold, he got busted exactly were I told him he would, Nogales Arizona. He is now in the Federal detention center in Eloy, Arizona and scheduled to be sent back in 2 weeks. When he returns he will go back to his job and back to helping her financially. She will still work for me at the wages I am currently paying. If she desires to move with us when I make the move to Sosua, that will be fine with me, boyfriend who left her not included. I will either find her a small clean apartment or she can stay with us and I'll just find a larger place. All is good in the land of Paradise.

Eddy · Apr 2, 2010

ExtremeR said:
If you try to do that with a maid you will have La Secretaria de Trabajo all over you, stop with the only RED day in the calendar crap. Semana Santa is from noon Thursday until Monday. Remember guys you are in the DR, not in the USA or Europe.

You talking to me. I 've had businesses dealing with the good the bad and the ugly in the DR for 25+ years. Secretaria twice and both rulings in my favor. Gimme a break with that USA or Europe crap.

What Holiday is the first 4 days in April

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