RP official sued for alleged breach of contract
A Filipino house worker has filed a breach of contract complaint against Ricardo P. Bautista, consul assistant at the Philippine Consulate General.
Glenda R. Tinay, through her lawyer Joe Hill, alleged that Bautista violated the Fair Labor Standards Act for failing to pay her all the hours she spent working for him.
Hill also accused the Philippine official of violating the Minimum Wage and Hour Act and the Nonresident Workers Act by failing to give Tinay overtime pay.
Tinay also sought compensation for all the hours she spent inside the premises of Bautista’s home and that he should provide her the airfare ticket to go back to the Philippines.
In the suit filed Feb. 1, 2005, Tinay said that Bautista hired her as a house worker on July 7, 2002. Tinay said she worked for Bautista from July 7, 2002 to Feb. 1, 2005.
She also included in her complaint that her accommodations were supposed to be with free lodging and meals and her wage was at $5.25 hourly rate plus overtime pay.
Tinay said that her contract with Bautista included an entitlement to a minimum of 40 hours overtime every month. Bautista also stated in the contract that she could not be required to remain on his home’s premises after working hours without compensation.
But according to Tinay’s complaint, all of these were not followed. She said that she was only paid a flat rate of $200 a month, given to her at every end of the month.
She also complained about her working hours, which were allegedly from 6:30am until 10:30pm. Tinay also alleges that she didn’t have any day off from July 7, 2002 to July 14, 2004, when Bautista changed her schedule and gave her a day off once a week.
Tinay also said that her employer failed to keep accurate records of the hours she rendered and she was forced to sleep on the couch in the living room, which she said she couldn’t get a full-night sleep on due to lack of privacy.
She also said in her complaint that she was compelled to do the laundry for the entire Bautista household and did babysitting for Bautista’s grandchild.
Tinay also stated in her complaint that she should be allowed to seek temporary work while the case is pending. (Marconi Calindas)
