G.R. No. 232823 - Spouses Padilla vs. Salovino

On September 1, 1958, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Manila, through counsel, filed with the Social Security Commission a request that “Catholic Charities, and all religious and charitable institutions and/or organizations, which are directly or indirectly, wholly or partially, operated by the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Manila,” be exempted from compulsory coverage under Republic Act No. 1161, as amended (Social Security Law of 1954).
The petition rested on the claim that the Social Security Law is a labor statute limited to businesses and activities organized for profit.

The Social Security Commission, acting on the recommendation of its Legal Staff, denied the petition by Resolution No. 572, series of 1958.
A motion for reconsideration was likewise denied by Resolution No. 767, series of 1958, prompting the Archbishop to appeal under Section 5(c) of R.A. 1161, as amended.

Section 9 mandates compulsory coverage of employees aged sixteen to sixty who have served an employer for at least six months, subject to employer membership requirements (operation for two years and a minimum number of employees).
Section 8 defines “employer” as any natural or juridical person carrying on any trade, business, industry, undertaking, or activity of any kind—and using the services of another—except the Government and its subdivisions; “employee” as any person performing compensated service for an employer; and “employment” as any service performed for an employer except those expressly enumerated.
Under the original law, Sec. 8(j), subparas. 7 and 8 excluded services for religious or charitable institutions, but these exclusions were expressly deleted by Republic Act No. 1792, effective 1957.

Whether the term “employer,” as defined in Sec. 8(c), includes non‐profit religious and charitable institutions.
Whether the rule of ejusdem generis limits “activity of any kind” to profit‐making enterprises.

Whether compulsory inclusion of religious institutions violates the constitutional prohibition against the use of public funds for clergy.
Whether enforcement of the Social Security Law imposes a tax on employment or impairs the free exercise of religious mission.