G.R. No. 100518 - ASSOCIATION OF TRADE UNIONS (ATU), RODOLFO MONTECLARO AND EDGAR JUESAN, VS. HON. COMISSIONERS OSCAR N. ABELLA, MUSIB N. BUAT, LEON GONZAGA JR., ALGON ENGINEERING CONSTRUCTION CORP., ALEX GONZALES AND EDITHA YAP.D E C I S I O N - Supreme Court E-Library

Ruling

Accordingly, petitioner union filed a petition for certification election with the regional office of the labor department. Respondent company opposed the petition on the ground that the workers were project employees and therefore not qualified to form part of the rank and file collective bargaining unit. Not for long, the Med-Arbiter dismissed the petition for certification election. On appeal, the Secretary of Labor and Employment reversed the Med-Arbiter's decision and ordered the immediate holding of a certification election. Meanwhile, the national president of petitioner union sent a demand letter to respondent company seeking the payment of wage differentials to some affected union members. As said demand was unheeded, petitioner union and the concerned workers filed a complaint for payment of wage differentials and other benefits before the Regional Office of the Department of Labor and Employment. Shortly thereafter, respondent company terminated the employment of aforementioned workers owing to the completion of its projects or the expiration of workers' contracts. Respondent company explained the circumstances surrounding the separation of the workers from the service as follows: "(1) The Contract No. 2AIPD-C-10 Second Agusan Irrigation Project of NIA wherein some of the herein complainants were assigned was already 98% completed when complaints were filed. With the near completion of the contract, services of the following complainants were no longer needed: (a) Gerundio Asejo (b) Victorio Lunzaga (c) Ramon R. Tabada (d) Alfredo E. Julet (sic) (e) Julito C. Macabodbod (2) In the case of Contract No. 2AIPD-C-II-second Agusan Irrigation Project of NIA, the following complainants were terminated because of the 95% completion of the phase of the project and expiration of their contract of employment: (a) Remsy B. Asensi (b) Rolando G. Olivar (c) Edgar A. Juezan (d) Rodolfo G. Monteclaro (e) Valeriano S. Meyas (sic) (f) Jose F. Noval (g) Pedro M. Roche (2) In Contract Package R11 1/209, Davao del Norte, the contracts of employment of Armand T. Acero and Felimon J. Dagbao (sic) Jr. expired. (3) In the Widening and Improvement of Rafael Castillo St., Davao City Project, where complainant Teodoro Tabio was assigned, he was terminated because he went on absent without leave (AWOL) while Lordito Tatad's contract of employment expired." [5] However, the affected workers claim that they were dismissed because of their union activities. In view of the alleged illegal dismissals and harassment by their employer, the workers staged a strike on May 17, 1989. Upon complaint of respondent company, Labor Arbiter Newton Sancho declared said strike illegal and decreed further that Victorio Lunzaga, Alfred Jalet, Julito Macabodbod, Ramon Tabada and Remsy Asensi, who had participated in the strike, were deemed to have lost their employment status. On appeal, the National Labor Relations Commission affirmed said decision. Petitioner union then elevated the