The thirteenth salary must be paid to dependent employees by December 24; Some will receive it in full, and others will receive what corresponds to the month because they paid for it monthly.

In 2019, the Ministry of Labor issued an Instruction for the payment and recording of the tithe, which stated what must be done, and even how to pay this compensation, as well as the fourteenth salary.

Article 4 of this document states that for the purposes of accumulating the thirteenth and fourteenth salary, the worker must submit a written request to the respective employees during the first fifteen days of January, i.e. by the 15th. If this method is maintained in the following years, a new request will no longer be necessary.

Who is not entitled to the thirteenth salary?

Is it advisable to accumulate the Christmas tithe monthly or?

Debtor Defense attorney César Coronel explains that when the proposal was presented that workers could pay tithes monthly, the intention was precisely to “provide some market liquidity” and solvency for families to be able to supplement that tithe income. , but yes, “loss of ability to collect the accumulated amount”, both in December and August (Sierra and Amazonia) and in April (coastal and island region) with respect to the fourteenth compensation.

Labor lawyer Vanessa Velásquez comments that the worker must take into account that if he decides to pay monthly, he will probably be without the possibility of achieving this double income in December, a month in which “everyone needs more liquidity”. which puts him at a disadvantage.

Coronel adds that, although it is the decision of each person to do it monthly, it must be foreseen that there are two consumptions that are important in the year that must be paid attention to and for which better preparation must be made, in addition to looking at the situations in which they occur, additional costs , as was the case during the pandemic, diseases, accidents, etc.

The convenience of saving every month

But it won’t be a complete disadvantage or disadvantage if you choose to pay monthly, as long as you save some of the value, experts agree. “At least part of that money received monthly should have a purpose or a savings destination,” says Coronel.

Which workers are entitled to the payment of the thirteenth salary?

The culture of saving must be fundamental and should start at home, where parents talk to their children not only about the importance of saving, but also where, according to the lawyer, the economic reality of the home is known, since previous generations did it. They were clear, but unfortunately that was lost over time.

Citing figures from the Network of Development Financial Institutions, in an analysis over five years in the country, Coronel comments that 62% of Ecuadorians do not have a savings culture, and 53% of people cover their daily expenses with loans.

“Although it is true that the economic situation today is complicated for many families who really have to use what they don’t have, i.e. credit, in order to be able to meet their daily expenses, it is also true that it must come from an accurate commitment to people (savings)”, he emphasizes.

According to lawyers, this obligation comes from the very beginning to make the numbers transparent, which consists of knowing the reality of income, expenses and debts in order to make decisions about:

Velásquez adds that if you decided to set that amount monthly, you can use it to pay the monthly fee for the purchase you made. “I think it’s a matter of deciding on the monthly flow,” he says.