G.R. No. 200499 - San Ferdo Coca-Cola Rank-and-File Union vs. Coca-Cola Bottlers Philippines, Inc.

San Fernando Coca-Cola Rank-and-File Union (SACORU), represented by its president Alfredo R. Maranon, filed a petition for review on certiorari under Rule 45 challenging CA Decision dated July 21, 2011 and Resolution dated February 2, 2012 in CA-G.R. SP No. 115985.
Coca-Cola Bottlers Philippines, Inc. (CCBPI) was the private respondent and employer.
The Court of Appeals affirmed the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC), Second Division, Resolution dated March 16, 2010 dismissing SACORU’s unfair labor practice complaint and declaring valid the dismissal of twenty-seven union members for redundancy.

On May 29, 2009, CCBPI issued notices of termination to twenty-seven rank-and-file regular employees who were members of SACORU, citing redundancy due to the ceding out of the Conventional Route System (CRS) and Mini Bodega System (MB) to Market Execution Partners (MEPs), the so-called Dealership System.
The terminations were effective June 30, 2009; the affected employees were placed on leave of absence with pay until that date.
CCBPI granted individual separation packages; twenty-two of the twenty-seven accepted the packages but did so under protest.

SACORU filed a Notice of Strike with the National Conciliation and Mediation Board on June 3, 2009, alleging among other things unfair labor practice and violation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) prohibiting contracting-out of regular positions.
SACORU conducted a strike vote on June 11, 2009, with a majority voting to strike.
On June 23, 2009, the Secretary of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Marianito D. Roque, assumed jurisdiction and certified the dispute to the NLRC for compulsory arbitration under Article 263 (g) of the Labor Code, enjoining any intended strike or lockout and ordering return-to-work and non-commitment of acts that may exacerbate the situation.

SACORU filed a motion for execution of the DOLE Secretary’s certification order to enjoin the dismissals; on August 26, 2009 the NLRC deferred resolution of the motion and treated the matter as part of the main dispute.
CCBPI maintained the redundancy resulted from a legitimate management decision to adopt a more cost-effective MEP/dealership distribution scheme.

SACORU’s contentions included: the terminations constituted circumvention of the CBA anti-outsourcing clause; the scheme would reduce union membership from about 250 to 120; contractualization would render the union inutile; the redundancy was a pretext for union busting.
CCBPI’s contentions included: the new Dealership System was a managem...(Subscriber-Only)

Whether CCBPI validly implemented its redundancy program that resulted in the dismissal of twenty-seven union members.

Whether CCBPI’s implementation of the redundancy program constituted an unfair labor practice affecting the employees’ right to self-organization.