Short answer. The heirs collect, and no court case is needed. Article 105 lets the employer pay a deceased worker's wages to the heirs without intestate proceedings. The heirs execute an affidavit of their relationship and that they are the only heirs, and payment is made through the Secretary of Labor's representative.
What the law says
the employer may pay the wages of the deceased worker to the heirs of the latter without the necessity of intestate proceedings
Labor Code, Article 105 — Direct Payment Of Wages. Read the full provision →
What the law says
The affidavit shall be presented to the employer who shall make payment through the Secretary of Labor and Employment or his representative.
Labor Code, Article 105 — Direct Payment Of Wages. Read the full provision →
No settlement proceeding stands in the way
Article 105 is written to spare a bereaved family the cost of a court case over what is usually a modest sum. Where the worker has died, the employer may pay the wages of the deceased worker to the heirs of the latter without the necessity of intestate proceedings. An employer that tells the family to come back with a court order settling the estate is asking for something the Labor Code does not require for these wages. The provision covers wages due to the worker; other benefits payable on death may come from different sources and follow their own rules.
The affidavit is the document that does the work
In place of a court proceeding, the article asks the claimants to execute an affidavit attesting to their relationship to the deceased and to the fact that they are his heirs, to the exclusion of all other persons. That last phrase matters — the affidavit is a sworn statement that nobody else has a claim, which is why it can substitute for a judicial settlement. If any of the heirs is a minor, the affidavit is executed on that child's behalf by the natural guardian or next-of-kin, so a minor's share is not simply left out.
Payment goes through the Department, not straight across the table
The affidavit shall be presented to the employer who shall make payment through the Secretary of Labor and Employment or his representative. The Secretary's representative then acts as referee in dividing the amount among the heirs. This is a protection for the family as much as for the employer: it puts a neutral officer between a grieving household and a sum of money, and it means no single relative decides how the wages are split. An employer that pays one heir directly, outside this route, has not followed the article.
What the payment settles, and what it does not
Payment made this way absolves the employer of any further liability with respect to the amount paid. So a second relative who appears later cannot make the employer pay twice over the same wages; any argument about shares is between the heirs. Before approaching the employer, gather the death certificate, proof of relationship such as birth or marriage certificates, and the last payslips or payroll records showing what was still owed. Those documents establish both who the heirs are and how much the article is being applied to.