G.R. No. 84685 - Ilaw at Buklod ng Manggagawa vs. Ferrer-Calleja

This is a special civil action of certiorari with a prayer for a writ of preliminary injunction.
The petitioner is ILAW AT BUKLOD NG MANGGAGAWA (IBM) Local No. 56, a union affiliated with a national organization, seeking relief from orders regarding a certification election.
The respondents include the Hon. Pura Ferrer-Calleja, in her capacity as Director of the Bureau of Labor Relations (BLR), and San Miguel Corporation (SMC).

On September 7, 1987, the petitioner union, then registered with the Labor Organization Division of the BLR as San Miguel Corporation Sales Force Union Calasiao Beer Region-IBM Local No. 56, requested voluntary recognition by SMC as the sole and exclusive bargaining representative for its covered employees.
The territorial coverage of the union encompassed the regional sales office and six additional sales offices located in Calasiao, Carmen, Alaminos, Tarlac, Cabanatuan, and San Isidro.

SMC denied the petitioner's request for voluntary recognition. Instead, SMC suggested and initiated a certification election as the proper means to determine the bargaining representative.
On November 27, 1987, SMC, through its North-Central Luzon Sales Operations Manager, filed a petition for a certification election limited to the sales personnel of the region, deliberately excluding the daily-paid and monthly-paid employees.
The union filed a motion to dismiss the employer’s petition, arguing that it was premature since it did not address the issue of collective bargaining with the union, citing Article 258 of the Labor Code.

On February 22, 1988, the Med-Arbiter issued an order directing that a certification election be conducted among the sales personnel of SMC’s North Central Luzon Beer Region. The order specified the inclusion of sales offices in Dagupan City, Carmen, Alaminos, Tarlac, Cabanatuan, and San Isidro.
The union appealed the Med-Arbiter’s order to the Bureau of Labor Relations.
On June 23, 1988, the BLR denied the appeal on the ground of lack of merit.
The certification election was subsequently conducted on September 19, 1988, resulting in the choice “NO UNION” as the winning option.

The legal basis for the certification election is found in Article 258 of the Labor Code which authorizes an employer, when requested to bargain collectively, to file a petition for such an election when no existing certified collective bargaining agreement is present.
The petitioner's request for voluntary recognition was equated with a request to engage in collective bargaining, thus justifying the employer’s recourse to a certification election.

Whether the issuance of the orders by the Med-Arbiter and subsequently the BLR—ordering the certification election—constituted grave abuse of discretion as alleged by the petitioner.
Whether the petitioner's request for voluntary recognition as the bargaining representative, and its subsequent dismissal, negates the legality of the certification election initiated by the employer based on Article 258 of the Labor Code.