G.R. NO. 161217 - BLUCOR MINERALS CORPORATION AND DENNIS UY, VS. ALFREDO M. AMARILLA, WILFREDO C. ALDIANO AND GASPAR R. PARCON,[1]. D E C I S I O N - Supreme Court E-Library

Ruling

WHEREFORE, premises considered, the instant petition for certiorari with prayer for the issuance of a temporary restraining order and/or a writ of preliminary injunction is hereby GRANTED. The two assailed resolutions, dated September 14, 2001 and March 18, 2002, of public respondent NLRC in NLRC CA No. M-006506-2001 (RAB XI-12-01146-00) are hereby SET ASIDE. A new one is hereby rendered reinstating the decision, dated June 22, 2001, of Executive Labor Arbiter Antonio M. Villanueva in NLRC Case No. RAB-XI-12-01146-00." [4] The Facts The CA narrated the facts thus: "[Respondent] Alfredo M. Amarilla is a regular employee of herein [Petitioner] Blucor Minerals Corporation ("Blucor," for brevity), having worked at Blucor's mining business since January 4, 1987 and assigned in the latter's internal security force, performing, among other matters, internal security tasks and escort services for Blucor's mineral stocks and properties. Co-[respondent] Wilfredo C. Aldiano is also a regular employee of Blucor, assigned at the latter's services and engineering department as a rewinder electrician since August 9, 1995 and continued to work thereat in the course of Blucor's usual business operations. x x x Co-[respondent] Gaspar R. Parcon is likewise a regular employee of Blucor since September 10, 1998, assigned at the latter's field operation as an underground inspector. "On July 31, 2000, Blucor notified Amarilla, Aldiano and Parcon to the effect that Blucor is terminating their employment due to retrenchment, effective August 31, 2000. "x x x [Respondents] questioned their termination from employment by filing a complaint, docketed as NLRC Case No. RAB-XI-12-01146-00, before the arbitration branch of x x x NLRC, for illegal dismissal against Blucor Minerals Corporation and its President Dennis Uy, alleging that herein [petitioner] did not incur substantial losses in its operation so as to justify their retrenchment. [Respondents] prayed for payment of overtime pay and premiums for overtime work, claiming that they were suffered to work everyday from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. [Respondents] also asked for payment of premiums for holiday and rest day work, 13th month pay, service incentive leave pay, and monetary value of vacation and sick leaves. "x x x. Blucor Minerals Corporation opposed the complaint, alleging that they maintained two operations called Blucor-1 and Blucor-2 and that due to the economic crisis affecting the country and the fact that the Blucor-1 operation yielded gold with low grade or quality, [Blucor] incurred serious business losses, so that it resorted to cost-reduction measures by closing the Blucor-2 operation and retrenching some workers, including herein [respondents]. In support thereof, [Blucor] presented [its] annual income tax return and financial statements showing the net loss in the amount of P2,038,846.10 for the year 2000. "Regarding the money claims, Blucor averred that [respondents] were not allowed to render overtime work