P.R. Laws tit. 29, § 289
The Secretary of Labor and Human Resources is hereby authorized to grant permits to employers or owners of establishments to employ workmen or employees in the days or hours in which the establishments must remain closed to the public or in night hours during which work by women is forbidden by Act June 21, 1919, No. 73 when in the judgment of the Secretary it may be necessary to work during such days or hours for the purpose of permitting said employers or owners to complete urgent or necessary works which must be finished within a determined time in shops, factories, or any other industrial or commercial establishments in Puerto Rico; Provided, however, That in no case whatsoever may a woman be employed after ten o’clock at night and until six o’clock in the morning, who is under eighteen (18) years of age, or who is pregnant, or who has worked during the next preceding sixteen (16) hours for a number of hours which, added to the number of hours she would have to work during the period from ten o’clock in the night to six o’clock in the morning, would exceed, in the aggregate, eight (8) hours of work during the above-mentioned period of twenty-four (24) hours.
Whenever an employer or owner finds it necessary to avail himself of the provisions of sections Act June 21, 1919, No. 73, he shall notify the Secretary of Labor and Human Resources, and in his absence, the Assistant Secretary, or such person as may be substituting him as the head of said Department, that such necessity exists and of the time that will be needed to complete the work, and the Secretary or Assistant Secretary, or the person substituting him as head of the Department, may issue the proper permit; Provided, That the extra hours worked and the compensation appertaining to the work performed under said permits shall be determined and paid for in accordance with the provisions of §§ 271—288 of this title. It shall be the duty of every employer or owner of an establishment to whom a permit has been granted to send to the Department of Labor and Human Resources, within the ten (10) days following the completion of the work, a duplicate of the payroll of the employees used therein, setting forth under oath the name of every employee, his address, type of work performed, time, and wages paid; and Provided, further, That upon the granting of the permit, the Secretary of Labor and Human Resources shall be authorized to investigate the motives or reasons of the employer or owner for making the request; and if he finds that the facts have been maliciously falsified or that the request was not justified, such facts shall constitute a misdemeanor, and, within the sixty (60) days following the granting of the permit, the proper complaint may be filed.
History —May 5, 1931, No. 80, p. 496; § 1; Apr. 15, 1935, No. 24, p. 188, § 1; May 14, 1947, No. 418, p. 842, § 1; May 6, 1949, No. 188, p. 594, § 2.