Text of the provision
Art. 281. Probationary employment. Probationary employment shall not exceed six
(6) months from the date the employee started working, unless it is covered by an apprenticeship agreement stipulating a longer period. The services of an employee who has been engaged on a probationary basis may be terminated for a just cause or when he fails to qualify as a regular employee in accordance with reasonable standards made known by the employer to the employee at the time of his engagement. An employee who is allowed to work after a probationary period shall be considered a regular employee.
Labor Code of the Philippines, Presidential Decree No. 442, as amended. Reproduced in full from the official enactment and verified against the LawPhil and ChanRobles renderings.
What this article means
Probation may not exceed six (6) months from the day the employee started working, unless an apprenticeship agreement stipulates a longer period. A probationary employee may be let go for a just cause or for failing to meet reasonable standards made known at the time of engagement; anyone allowed to work after the probationary period is a regular employee.
Questions about this provision
- Does signing an apprenticeship agreement let my employer keep me on probation longer than six months?
- If my employer lets me keep working past my probation end date without saying anything, am I already regular?
Related provisions
- Article 280 — Regular And Casual Employment.
- Article 282 — Just Causes For Dismissal.
A note on article numbers. The articles of the Labor Code have been administratively renumbered, so the same provision is often cited under a different number. Supreme Court decisions write both, in the form “Article 297 [282]” — the new number first, the original in brackets. The text on this page is published under its original number, which is the numbering both source texts use. When citing, check which numbering your source follows.
Cases interpreting this article
- Authorities on this article will be added here as each is verified against primary sources.