Title
Gloria vs. Court of Appeals
Case
G.R. No. 131012
Decision Date
Apr 21, 1999
Public school teachers staged strikes in 1990, faced administrative charges, and were suspended. Exonerated of strike-related charges but guilty of minor violations, they were awarded back salaries, capped at five years, for unjustified suspension periods.

Case Digest (G.R. No. 131012)
Expanded Legal Reasoning Model

Facts:

  • Background and Parties
    • Petitioner: Hon. Ricardo T. Gloria, Secretary of the Department of Education, Culture, and Sports (DECS).
    • Respondents: Public school teachers Amparo A. Abad, Virgilia M. Bandigas, Elizabeth A. Somebang, and Nicanor Margallo.
  • Chronology of Administrative Proceedings
    • September–October 1990: During illegal teachers’ strikes, respondents did not report for work; DECS charged them with grave misconduct, neglect of duty, civil service violations, insubordination, AWOL, etc., and placed them under preventive suspension.
    • Investigation and Penalties: Margallo dismissed eff. October 29, 1990; Abad, Bandigas, Somebang suspended six months eff. December 4, 1990.
    • Appeals: MSPB reduced Margallo’s dismissal to six-month suspension; CSC further found all four guilty only of reasonable office rule violations, reduced penalty to reprimand, and ordered reinstatement.
    • Court of Appeals (Sept 3, 1996): Affirmed CSC for Abad, Bandigas, Somebang; reversed suspension of Margallo to reprimand. (July 15 & Oct 6, 1997) Amended decision to grant respondents back salaries for suspension beyond the 90-day preventive period.
    • Secretary Gloria’s motions for reconsideration denied; petition for review on certiorari filed with the Supreme Court.

Issues:

  • Entitlement to Back Salaries
    • Does an employee preventively suspended pending investigation but later exonerated have a right to back pay?
    • Does an employee preventively suspended pending appeal (beyond 90 days) and later exonerated have a right to back pay?

Ruling:

  • (Subscriber-Only)

Ratio:

  • (Subscriber-Only)

Doctrine:

  • (Subscriber-Only)

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