The end of the year not only brings celebrations, but also recurring queries on labor rights. The dates December 24, 25 and 31as well as the January 1often generate confusion between employers and workers, which can lead to errors in forms, claims and administrative sanctions.
Given this scenario, the Rodríguez & Asociados law firm disseminated a series of legal details and recommendations to face these days in accordance with the current regulatory framework.
December 25 and January 1: mandatory national holidays
According to him article 6 of Legislative Decree No. 713he December 25 and January 1 are mandatory and paid national holidays for workers in the private sector labor regime.
This implies that the worker receive your remuneration without having to work. If you provide services on these days, the triple payment of daily remunerationunless the employer grants a substitute rest.
The study warns that one of the most frequent errors is pay double instead of triplea situation that is usually observed by National Superintendence of Labor Supervision (SUNAFIL)especially on these dates.
December 24 and 31: are not holidays in 2025
A different scenario presents itself with the December 24 and 31that No non-working days have been declared by express rule for the year 2025..
He Supreme Decree No. 042-2025-PCMwhich regulates compensable non-working days for the public sector during 2025 and January 2026, only recognizes Friday, December 26, 2025 as a non-working day in December.
However, in practice, both public entities and private companies may grant December 24 and/or 31 as non-working days by internal decision. In the private sector, this is a power of the employerwhich can be exercised by agreement with the workers or unilaterally.
In these cases, hours not worked must be compensatedwithin the following ten days or at the opportunity established by the employer, without additional payment and without setting up a holiday.
Five recommendations to avoid labor conflicts
Faced with the high commercial activity and the need to organize shifts in sectors such as commerce, transportation and services, Rodríguez & Associates makes five key recommendations:
- Communicate in writing whether December 24 and 31 will be worked or not and how they will be compensated.
- Correctly record attendance on December 25 and January 1.
- Plan compensation of hours to avoid overload or confusion.
- Review internal policies or collective agreements that provide additional benefits.
- Verify the payment slipensuring the correct application of triple payment on holidays.
The study highlights that wrongly treating these dates as holidays It usually generates economic expectations that do not correspond to the legal framework.
