Family Driver Job Description in the Philippines: What to Write

TL;DR: A family driver is not a kasambahay. The Implementing Rules of RA 10361 leave family drivers out, Wage Order No. NCR-DW-06 repeats the exclusion, and in Atienza v. Saluta the Supreme Court sent the rights of family drivers back to the Civil Code. So there is no wage order floor, no statutory 13th month pay, and no holiday premium unless you write them in. The job description and the contract are the whole protection here, for the family and for the driver.

The part almost every family driver job ad gets wrong

Search the phrase and you get American chauffeur templates asking for "discretion and professionalism". Useless in Manila traffic, and useless in Philippine law. A family driver falls into a legal gap most families have never heard of, and that gap is why the job description matters more here than it would anywhere else.

Wage Order No. NCR-DW-06 raised the monthly minimum wage for domestic workers in Metro Manila from ₱7,000 to ₱7,800, effective 7 February 2026. Its Section 2 covers general househelp, yaya, cook, gardener, laundry person, and anyone who regularly performs domestic work in one household on an occupational basis. Then it names who is not covered. Service providers. Family drivers. Anyone working occasionally and not on an occupational basis.

That is not a drafting slip. Section 2 of the Implementing Rules of Republic Act 10361, the Batas Kasambahay approved on 18 January 2013, draws the same line, and Section 4(d) of the statute never mentions drivers at all.

If you assumed the kasambahay rules cover the person who drives your kids to school, read the next section before you write anything.

Where a family driver's rights actually come from

Before 2013, family drivers were domestic workers. Article 141 of the Labor Code defined household service to include "services of family drivers" in so many words. Section 44 of the Kasambahay Law repealed that whole chapter, Articles 141 to 152, and carried family drivers into nothing.

The Supreme Court cleaned up the mess in Atienza v. Saluta, G.R. No. 233413, decided 17 June 2019. A personal driver on ₱9,000 a month with free board and lodging sued for wage differentials, holiday pay, 13th month pay, and service incentive leave. The Court held that the repeal plus the non-coverage means the rights of family drivers "revert back to the Civil Code provisions, particularly Articles 1689, 1697 and 1699".

NWPC Resolution No. 03, Series of 2020, issued 14 May 2020, followed the ruling and reversed the Commission's own earlier position. It resolves that "the wages of family drivers shall be governed by their contractual arrangements with the households they are rendering service for pursuant to the Civil Code of the Philippines."

Here is what that leaves you with.

| What applies to a family driver | Source | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------- | | Pay must be reasonable, a stipulation of no pay is void, and pay is on top of lodging, food, and medical attendance | Civil Code Article 1689, applied in Atienza v. Saluta | | Unjust dismissal costs pay earned plus 15 days indemnity. Leaving without justifiable reason forfeits unpaid salary up to 15 days | Civil Code Article 1697 | | The driver may demand a written statement of service, duration, and conduct | Civil Code Article 1699 | | SSS coverage is compulsory on employees not over 60 and on their employers | RA 11199, Section 9(a) | | Pag-IBIG coverage is mandatory on all employees covered by SSS | RA 9679, Section 6 | | PhilHealth membership is automatic for every Filipino citizen | RA 11223, Section 5 | | Kasambahay wage, leave, and termination rules | None. Family drivers are excluded |

And the part families do not like hearing. In Atienza the Court held the employer was not liable for "holiday pay, 13th month pay and service incentive leave pay because persons in the personal service of another, such as family drivers, are exempted from the coverage of such benefits" under Labor Code Articles 82, 94 and 95 and Section 3(d) of the rules implementing Presidential Decree No. 851. That rule exempts "employers of household helpers and persons in the personal service of another in relation to such workers".

So no, a family driver is not legally entitled to 13th month pay. Pay it anyway, and say so in the contract. A driver who watches the yaya receive a 13th month while they get nothing starts looking for work in October. And the moment you write it down it stops being a favour and becomes a term you can both plan around. Same for the rest day and the overtime rate.

The Social Security System's household employer page sets out the path: file form PPS-HEUR1, get a household employer ID number, report the worker for coverage within 30 days of hiring, and remit using a Payment Reference Number. That page is written around house helpers, so confirm with an SSS branch which route fits a driver. Do not skip it. SSS is compulsory even though the wage order is not.

For the number itself, use our family driver salary guide and the salary calculator. This guide is about the job.

Where the law is still unsettled

Three things nobody can answer for you with a citation.

The hybrid role. A driver who also cooks, cleans, and does laundry on an occupational basis may be doing domestic work for part of the week, and no wage order says how to split the day. If your "driver" is really a driver and general househelp, read who counts as a domestic worker and expect the kasambahay rules to bite for the household half.

The SSS channel. The household employer form is written for house helpers, while the law making coverage compulsory speaks of employees generally. Ask the branch, keep the receipt.

What a court would do with a driver who works fourteen-hour days for years. Article 1689 says the pay must be reasonable. Nobody has drawn that line. Write a schedule you would be comfortable reading aloud in a hearing.

Duties, sorted by how often they actually happen

Most job ads list duties in a random pile. Sort them by frequency instead. That is how the driver experiences the week, and how you spot the hidden hours.

| How often | Duty | The detail that causes arguments later | | ---------- | ------------------------------------------------------ | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Daily | School run, office run, market or clinic trips | Exact pickup times, who is allowed to change them, how late is late | | Daily | Waiting between trips | Where the driver waits, whether they may leave the vehicle, whether waiting is paid | | Daily | Fuel level and tyre check before the first trip | Who tops up, who keeps the fuel log | | Weekly | Wash and interior clean | At home or at a car wash, and who pays | | Weekly | Fluid and tyre pressure check | A named day, not "when you remember" | | Occasional | Airport runs, out-of-town trips, hospital emergencies | Notice period, per diem, lodging on overnight trips | | Occasional | Errands without passengers, parcel and document pickup | Cash limits, receipt rules, reimbursement date | | Yearly | LTO registration renewal and insurance renewal | Who books the appointment, who pays the fees, who holds the documents | | Ongoing | Planning around the Metro Manila coding day | Name the person who checks the current MMDA scheme, since city rules and windows change |

That last row is where families get careless. Do not write "must know coding". Name who confirms the current scheme and reroutes the school run on a coded day.

What is not in the job unless you agree it and pay for it

Scope creep is the number one reason a good family driver quits. Say the quiet part in the job description.

• [ ] Household chores. Mopping, laundry, dishes, and cooking are a different job. If you want them, you are hiring a driver plus househelp, and the terms change.
• [ ] Driving for the family business. Deliveries, staff transport, and client runs are commercial work for a company that is not the household. Do not slip it into a personal service arrangement.
• [ ] Lending the driver to relatives. Your sister's Saturday errands are not covered by your contract, and if something happens on that trip your insurance may agree with me.
• [ ] Overnight trips without lodging and a per diem. A driver sleeping in the van in a provincial parking lot is not a rest period.
• [ ] Personal use of the vehicle. Either allow it in writing with limits, or prohibit it in writing. Silence is how a fender bender becomes a fight.

Put this list at the end of the job description. It reads as fair to a good candidate and screens out anyone hoping to renegotiate later.

Requirements worth asking for

Keep this list short and enforceable. Every line should be something you will actually check.

1. A professional driver's licence. Republic Act 4136, the Land Transportation and Traffic Code approved 20 June 1964, defines a professional driver at Section 3(e) as "every and any driver hired or paid for driving or operating a motor vehicle, whether for private use or for hire to the public". Section 24 says no owner "shall engage, employ, or hire any person to operate such motor vehicle, unless the person sought to be employed is a duly licensed professional driver". A non-professional licence is not enough, even for a private family car.
2. A licence that covers your vehicle. Section 24 also says the licence lets the holder operate "the motor vehicles described in such license". Read the codes on the card against what sits in your garage. If unsure, verify at an LTO office.
3. A clean driving record. Ask for the apprehension record and check for unsettled violations.
4. NBI clearance and a local police clearance. Recent, and you look at the original.
5. A medical certificate with an eyesight test. A safety requirement, not a formality, and it matters more than a certificate of good moral character.
6. Two contactable references from past driving jobs. Call both. Ask about punctuality, accidents, and honesty with fuel money.
7. Route knowledge for your area. Someone who has driven Alabang to Ortigas daily is a different candidate from someone who has only driven in Cebu.

Skip "at least five years experience". Three years on your exact route beats ten years somewhere else.

Hours, waiting, and the on-call problem

There is no statutory hours cap here, so the schedule is yours to write. That is a responsibility, not a freedom.

A realistic Metro Manila day runs about ten hours from the first school run to the evening pickup, and a large slice of it is waiting. Waiting is the job. A driver parked outside an office for three hours cannot go home, cannot take other work, and is not resting. Price it honestly.

Put these five things in the contract in plain language.

1. Normal start and finish time, and the usual service area.
2. The weekly rest day, named as a day, plus how it is rescheduled when the family travels.
3. The overtime rate and who is allowed to approve overtime. A per-hour figure beats "we will take care of you".
4. On-call rules. If evenings and weekends are standby, say how often, how much notice, and what standby pays.
5. Live-in or live-out. If live-in, describe the room, meals, privacy, and the hours that are genuinely off duty. Being on the property is not the same as being at work, and the contract should say which is which.

"Available anytime" is not a schedule. It is a dispute waiting for a bad night.

Safety rules that belong in writing, not in a lecture

• No phone in the hand while driving, hands-free only, and calls answered after pulling over when children are aboard.
• No unauthorised passengers. Nobody rides who is not on the agreed list, including the driver's own family and friends.
• A written accident procedure. Stop, check injuries, call the family, call emergency services, photograph everything, admit no liability at the roadside, settle nothing in cash.
• Zero alcohol during any working or standby period, with the standby window defined.
• Dashcam disclosure. Tell the driver in writing before day one whether a camera is fitted, whether it records audio, who may view the footage, and how long it is kept. An undisclosed camera is both a trust problem and a privacy problem.
• Child safety. Name who may collect each child, agree a password with older kids, and never leave a child alone in the vehicle.

How to interview and road-test

The interview tells you about the person. The road test tells you about the driver. Do both, and pay for the driving time even if you do not hire.

A paid road test on your real route. Not a loop around the village. Drive the actual school run at the actual hour, with an adult in the passenger seat and no children in the car. Watch following distance, lane discipline, and what they do when someone cuts them off.

A parking test. Your building's ramp, your slot, your garage. Tight parking is where paint gets damaged and where confidence shows.

A flat tyre scenario. "You get a flat on Skyway with the kids in the back. Walk me through the next ten minutes." Good answers start with hazard lights, a safe stopping point, and calling you. Bad answers start with the jack.

The red light question. "We are late for a flight and I tell you to run the red light. What do you do?" You want someone who says no to you, politely, in an interview. That is the whole test.

A money question. "You paid ₱600 for parking and lost the receipt. What happens?" Listen for someone who tells you immediately rather than padding the next claim.

Our housekeeper interview questions guide has a format that adapts well.

Background checks that do not overreach

Verify what the job needs and nothing else. Licence status, apprehension record, NBI and police clearance, medical certificate, and references are all fair. Photographing every page of a passport and sharing it in the family group chat is not.

Never hold original documents. Confiscating an ID is a control tactic, not a security measure, and to any experienced driver it is the clearest sign of a bad household. Take a photocopy, hand the original back, and say when you will delete the copy.

Tell the candidate what you are checking, who will see it, and how long you keep it. If you do not hire, delete the file. The rule behind our vetting process applies to a family doing its own checks too. A clearance is a signal, not a guarantee, and it never replaces references and a written scope.

One more. Never ask a candidate to drive your children before the terms are agreed and the checks are done. A trial period is fine. An unvetted stranger doing the school run is not.

A job description you can copy

Paste this, fill the brackets, and delete what does not apply.

Position: Family Driver (live-out)
Household: [surname], [city / village]
Vehicles: [make, model, transmission]
Passengers: [names or roles, ages of children]

Schedule
- Monday to Saturday, [start] to [finish]
- Rest day: [day]. Rescheduled by mutual agreement with 3 days notice
- Waiting time between trips is working time and is paid
- Overtime beyond [finish]: ₱[amount] per hour, approved in advance by [name]
- On-call evenings: maximum [n] per month, ₱[amount] per call-out

Duties
- Daily: school run, office run, errands within [service area]
- Daily: fuel and tyre check before first trip, maintain the fuel log
- Weekly: exterior wash, interior clean, fluid and tyre pressure check
- As needed: airport transfers, out-of-town and hospital trips
- Annual: LTO registration and insurance renewal, booked with [name]
- Track the current Metro Manila coding scheme and reroute around it

Not included without a separate written agreement and additional pay
- Household chores, cooking, laundry, childcare
- Driving for the family business or for relatives
- Overnight trips without lodging and a per diem
- Personal use of the household vehicle

Requirements
- Valid professional driver's licence covering the vehicles above
- Clean apprehension record, NBI clearance, police clearance
- Medical certificate with eyesight test, issued within 6 months
- Two contactable references from previous driving employment
- Working knowledge of [routes / areas]

Household rules
- No phone in hand while driving. Hands-free only
- No unauthorised passengers
- Zero alcohol during working and standby hours
- Dashcam fitted, recording [video only / video and audio]
- Children released only to: [names]
- Accident procedure: [attached one page]

Pay and benefits
- Monthly salary: ₱[amount], paid on [dates] with a payslip
- 13th month pay: [amount or formula], paid by [date]
- SSS, PhilHealth, and Pag-IBIG registration and remittance by the employer
- Fuel, tolls, and parking reimbursed against receipts within [n] days
- Traffic violations caused by driver error: [who pays]
- Start date, probation, notice period on both sides
- Certificate of service on request when employment ends

Attach it to the contract instead of retyping it. Our kasambahay contract template is built for domestic workers, so borrow its structure and rewrite the clauses that lean on the Kasambahay Law. The Kasambahay Law explainer shows which ones those are.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is a family driver covered by the Kasambahay Law?

No. Section 2 of the Implementing Rules of Republic Act 10361 lists family drivers among those not covered, and Wage Order No. NCR-DW-06 repeats the exclusion in its coverage section. In Atienza v. Saluta the Supreme Court held that the rights of family drivers revert to the Civil Code. The contract, not a wage order, sets the terms.

Does a family driver get 13th month pay in the Philippines?

Not by law. In Atienza v. Saluta the Supreme Court held that persons in the personal service of another, such as family drivers, are outside holiday pay, 13th month pay, and service incentive leave under Labor Code Articles 82, 94 and 95 and Section 3(d) of the rules implementing Presidential Decree 851. Once you promise it in the written contract, it becomes enforceable as a contractual term.

What licence does a family driver need?

A professional driver's licence. Republic Act 4136 defines a professional driver as anyone hired or paid to drive, whether for private use or for hire, and Section 24 says no owner may employ a person to operate a motor vehicle unless that person is a duly licensed professional driver. Check that the vehicle types printed on the card cover the vehicle you own.

How many hours should a family driver work?

There is no statutory hours cap for a family driver, which is exactly why the schedule belongs in the contract. A ten-hour day with long waiting time between the school run and the evening pickup is normal in Metro Manila. Write the start time, the finish time, the rest day, the overtime rate, and what an on-call evening actually pays.

What should a family driver job description include?

The vehicles, the passengers, the routes and service area, the daily schedule and rest day, waiting-time expectations, vehicle upkeep duties, who pays fuel, tolls, parking and violations, the safety and phone rules, the accident procedure, pay and benefits, and a plain list of tasks that are not part of the job.

Write it down before the first school run

The legal gap around family drivers is not a loophole to use. It is a warning that nothing protects either side except what the two of you agree and sign. No wage order sets your floor. No statute hands the driver a 13th month. The Civil Code gives a 15-day indemnity rule and a duty to pay reasonably. After that it is your document.

Job ads are a weak substitute for it. JobStreet's Metro Manila family driver page says its insights come only from salary ranges employers disclose in ads, which tells you what other households advertise and nothing about what your schedule is worth.

Write the description first, then interview against it. When it is ready, browse family driver profiles and send every candidate the same document before the road test. If this is your first hire, create a family account and keep the job description attached to the shortlist, so the terms you agreed in September are still the terms in March.