Exceptions to overtime payment.
The working shift is the one agreed by the parties in the employment contract. However, article 147 of the Labor Code establishes that the employer and the worker cannot agree to a working shift exceeding 44 hours per week.
The working shift agreed between the parties under the provisions of article 147 is what is known as normal or ordinary working hours. If the employee works more than the normal working shift, the employer has to pay overtime.
As an exception to the provisions of article 147, article 150 of the Dominican Labor Code states that article 147 is not applicable unless otherwise agreed, to:
Workers who act as representatives or agents of the employer;
Workers who hold management or inspection positions.
On the other hand, article 2 of Convention number 1 of the International Labor Organization, ratified by the Dominican Republic, add that employees in a confidential capacity are neither subject to the legal limits on working hours.
Employees in a confidential capacity are those who do not have decision-making or representative power, but:
who work in personal and direct contact with the company's management personnel;
who have access to industrial, commercial or professional secrets or reserved information; and
whose opinions or reports are presented to the management personnel, for the formation of business decisions.
That is, high-level employees, those with management or supervisory responsibilities, or those in a confidential capacity do not have the right to be paid overtime unless the parties have agreed otherwise.
In short, if an employee occupies a managerial, administrative, or trusted position, then this employee is not entitled to overtime.
