Laurence alleged that on September 3, 2007, he was hired by Verizon Communications Philippines, Inc. (Verizon) as network engineer.
Laurence narrated that sometime in January 2012, his doctor diagnosed him with pulmonary tuberculosis and pneumonia for which he was recommended to isolate and rest for 60 days.
Laurence informed his manager of his medical condition, and did not report for work from February 3, 2012 to recuperate from his illness. He went to Guimaras Island to quarantine himself and avoid the spread of his disease.
On March 14, 2012, Laurence received a notice to explain. When he called his manager to ask why he was being made to explain, the latter answered that the employer already terminated his employment on March 12, 2012.
Two weeks later, Laurence received a letter of termination from his employer, prompting him to file a complaint for illegal dismissal and damages against the latter.
In his case, Laurence claimed to have been illegally dismissed and entitled to his money claims. He asserted that there was no just or authorized cause for his dismissal and that the employer failed to observe the requirements of due process. Laurence also claimed that he did not abandon his work since he was able to notify the employer of his illness and the need for medical treatment on isolation. According to Laurence, his absence is justified due to his sickness that needed a long rest and quarantine period to prevent the spread of the disease to his co-workers.
For its part, the employer acknowledged that on February 3, 2012, Laurence notified his manager through text message on his absence. However, the employer pointed out that Laurence did not indicate the duration of his leave and no longer answered its manager’s phone calls. After more than a month of not hearing from Laurence, the employer sent its nurse, who was able to check on Laurence and serve him a notice requiring him to explain his unauthorized absence and why he should not be considered to have abandoned his work. It was only on March 14, 2012 that Laurence called his manager regarding the notice and explained that he had no cellphone reception in the place where he was. On the same day, Laurence sent an email in which he admitted his mistake, apologized for his unauthorized absence, and sought reconsideration of his dismissal. In view of Laurence’s admission, the employer terminated his employment on March 28, 2012.
The employer further averred that Laurence was aware of its policies on attendance and absences. Nonetheless, he failed to notify the employer of the duration of his leave. The notice he gave to his manager was not enough because he did not mention the length of his absence and did not submit a medical certificate or medical test results. For the employer, his 38-day absence, as well as his admission, warranted his termination from employment.
In its Decision dated February 11, 2013, the Office of the Labor Arbiter dismissed the complaint for lack of merit.
According to the Office of the Labor Arbiter, Laurence, a Network Engineer whose presence was always expected by the employer in the worksite, went on prolonged absence without official leave for 38 consecutive days, without informing his manager or the employer about it and without even offering any reasonable explanation for his failure to inform the employer of his prolonged absences. For the Office of the Labor Arbiter, the employer cannot be faulted in applying its rule on unauthorized absences for 5 consecutive days, which carried a penalty of dismissal from employment.
Aggrieved, Laurence appealed before the National Labor Relations Commission, pointing out that his prolonged absence was due to health reasons and he did not intend to abandon his work. Laurence thus insisted on his stand that no valid cause attended his dismissal from employment.
The National Labor Relations Commission reversed the Office of the Labor Arbiter’s ruling and upheld Laurence’s stand that the employer failed to show just cause in terminating his employment. The Commission explained that the rules of the employer only mandates its employees to notify their manager 4 hours before taking a sick leave and to submit his/her medical certificate upon return. The Commission found that Laurence was able to notify his immediate manager through text message about his sickness and his leave on February 3, 2012. Since the Commission did not consider the absences of Laurence as unauthorized, his dismissal from employment was declared illegal.
The employer filed a petition for certiorari before the Court of Appeals, but the latter upheld the Decision of the National Labor Relations Commission. The Court of Appeals added that the length of his absence is justified considering that pulmonary tuberculosis and pneumonia are commonly considered to be serious infectious diseases.
The employer elevated its case to the Supreme Court and asserted that Laurence was validly dismissed because of his deliberate violation of the employer’s rules on unauthorized absences and excessive absenteeism. The employer stated that it validly exercised its management prerogative in applying its rules. Finally, it granted Laurence ample opportunity to be heard.
Was Laurence validly dismissed from employment?
The Supreme Court ruled in the negative, because Laurence was not found to have violated the employer’s rules on authorized and unauthorized absences.
The Court reiterated prevailing principles in that the employer in an illegal dismissal case has the burden of proving that an employee’s dismissal from service was for a just or authorized cause. Otherwise, the employer’s failure shall result in a finding that the dismissal is unjustified.
Record showed that the employer dismissed Laurence because of his alleged violation of its rules. Under such rules, the absence of an employee may be authorized or unauthorized. An authorized absence, due to sickness, requires that the employee send his manager notice 4 hours before his shift, with a reasonable description of his illness, and the submission of the employee’s proof of illness on his return date. On the other hand, the employee’s absence becomes unauthorized if the employee fails to notify his/her immediate superior, or if the employee fails to submit a medical certificate on his/her return date.
However, the Supreme Court found that on February 3, 2012, Laurence sent his manager a text message, informing the latter that he will be absent because he was sick with pulmonary tuberculosis, a contagious disease, and was advised to take medication. It was also found that the manager did not deny having received this message from Laurence.
The Supreme Court thus stated that the information given by Laurence was sufficient to properly apprise the employer of his condition. Furthermore, Laurence’s failure to submit proof of illness while he was on sick leave and to indicate a return date did not render his absence unauthorized. The Court added that Laurence was no longer given the opportunity to submit his medical certificate and other documents to prove his illness.
With regard to the employer’s policy on excessive absenteeism, which prescribes dismissal as penalty, the Court ruled that the same was harsh.
The Court mentioned that the Constitution looks with compassion on the working class and is intent on protecting their rights. A worker’s employment is property in a constitutional sense, and he/she cannot be deprived thereof without due process and unless the deprivation is commensurate to his/her acts and degree of moral depravity. While the right of an employer to terminate the services of an employee for a just or authorized cause is recognized, the dismissal must be made within the parameters of law and pursuant to the tenets of equity and fair play. An employer’s power to discipline his employees must not be exercised in an arbitrary manner as to erode the constitutional guarantee of security of tenure.
The Court continued that although the power to dismiss employees is a formal prerogative of the employer, such power is not without limitations. The employer is bound to exercise caution in terminating the services of his employees and dismissals must not be arbitrary and capricious. Due process must be observed and employers should respect and protect the rights of their employees. To effect a valid dismissal, the law requires not only that there be just and valid cause; it must also be supported by evidence. There must be a reasonable proportionality between the offense and the penalty. Even when there exist some rules agreed upon between the employer and employee on the subject of dismissal, the same cannot preclude the State from inquiring on whether their rigid application would work too harshly on the employee. Dismissal, without doubt, is the ultimate penalty that can be meted to an employee. Hence, where a penalty less punitive would suffice, whatever missteps may be committed by labor ought not to be visited with a consequence so severe. The Court stressed that it will not hesitate to disregard a penalty that is manifestly disproportionate to the infraction committed.
In the present case, the Court noted that since the employer raised Laurence’s violation of its rules, it is incumbent upon the employer to prove that Laurence clearly, voluntarily and intentionally committed the infraction. However, the Court found that Laurence’s absence from work was due to sickness and that he gave proper notification of his absence, which reason should have been given kind consideration by the employer. The Court remarked that an employee cannot anticipate when an illness may happen, thus, he may not be able to give prior notice or seek prior approval of his absence, but could only do so after the occurrence of the incident.
The Court added that even assuming that Laurence was found to have deliberately violated the employer’s rules, the penalty of dismissal imposed upon him was too harsh and disproportionate to the wrongdoing committed. In this regard, the Court maintained that it is not bound by the employer’s rules, as well as the employer’s findings of violation and dismissal. It is settled that the law serves to equalize the unequal. The labor force is a special class that is constitutionally protected because of the inequality between capital and labor. This constitutional protection presupposes that the labor force is weak. However, the level of protection to labor should vary from case to case; otherwise, the State might appear to be too paternalistic in affording protection to labor.
The Court also found that Laurence was not accorded procedural due process.
The Court stated that to effect a valid dismissal on the ground of just cause, the employer is bound to observe procedural due process. Procedural due process consists of the twin requirements of notice and hearing. The employer must furnish the employee with 2 written notices before the termination of employment can be implemented:
- the first apprises the employee of the particular acts or omission for which his dismissal is sought; and
- the second informs the employee of the employer’s decision to dismiss him.
In the present case, the Court found that the notices issued by the employer failed to observe the standards set forth in case law. The Court said that while the employer ostensibly afforded Laurence the opportunity to refute the charge of AWOL and abandonment against him, the employer deprived him of due process when he was not given ample time to prepare his defense and later on, when his explanation was not given consideration on the ground that it was submitted beyond the 48-hour period.
What reliefs were granted to Laurence?
In view of the finding of illegal dismissal, the Court upheld the grant of separation pay, but it deleted the award of backwages.
With regard to reinstatement, the Court discussed that usually, reinstatement without loss of seniority rights and other privileges and full backwages are granted to illegally dismissed employees.
However, if actual reinstatement is no longer possible, the employee becomes entitled to separation pay in lieu of reinstatement. Based on jurisprudence, reinstatement is not feasible:
- in cases where the dismissed employee’s position is no longer available
- the continued relationship between the employer and the employee is no longer viable due to the strained relations between them; and
- when the dismissed employee opted not to be reinstated, or the payment of separation benefits would be for the best interest of the parties involved.
In these instances, said the Court, separation pay is the alternative remedy to reinstatement in addition to the award of backwages. The payment of separation pay and reinstatement are exclusive remedies. Stated differently, the payment of separation pay replaces the legal consequences of reinstatement to an employee who was illegally dismissed.
In the present case, the Court upheld the grant of separation pay in favor of Laurence since it was consistently found that he opted to receive separation pay instead of reinstatement.
On the other hand, with regard to backwages, the Court elaborated that in labor cases, the Court is tasked with the delicate act of balancing the employee’s right to security of tenure against the employer’s right to freely exercise its management prerogatives. Even though it is basic in labor law that an illegally dismissed employee is entitled to reinstatement, or separation pay if reinstatement is not viable, and payment of full backwages, in some instances, the Court has carved out exceptions where the reinstatement of an employee was ordered without an award of backwages. This is on account of: (1) the fact that dismissal of the employee would be too harsh of a penalty; and (2) that the employer was in good faith in terminating the employment.
The Court held that the employer is excused from paying backwages to Laurence because it considered the penalty of dismissal to be harsh. Although Laurence did not violate the employer’s rules on authorized and unauthorized absences since he was able to notify his immediate manager of his absence on February 3, 2012 because of his sickness, the Court found that he cannot be deemed entirely faultless. Aside from the text message he sent, he did nothing else to comply with the employer’s rules. He did not inform the employer that he would leave his residence nor leave any information on how he may be reached. On the other hand, his manager exerted efforts to contact Laurence, albeit to no avail. For such reasons, the Court held that no basis supported an award of backwages. Such award of backwages was thus deleted.
Further reading:
- Verizon Communications Philippines, Inc. v. Margin, G.R. No. 216599, September 16, 2020.
