Title
Gemina, Jr. vs. Bankwise, Inc.
Case
G.R. No. 175365
Decision Date
Oct 23, 2013
Gemina claimed constructive dismissal by Bankwise due to alleged harassment, withheld salaries, and demands to return his service vehicle. The Supreme Court ruled no constructive dismissal, citing management prerogative and lack of substantial evidence.
constructive dismissal
harassment
performance targets
A

Case Summary (G.R. No. 175365)

Factual Background: The Employment Contract and the Alleged Harassment

Gemina entered into an employment contract with Bankwise on August 9, 2002, appointing him effective August 1, 2002 as Marketing Officer with the rank of Senior Manager. His annual salary was PHP 750,000.00, computed under a fifteen-month scheme, or PHP 50,000.00 per month, and he was also entitled to a service vehicle for field work. The contract imposed a fund level commitment of PHP 100,000,000.00 for the first six months of employment. It further stipulated that Gemina’s performance relative to his ability to generate deposits would be monitored monthly and reviewed on the sixth month.

Gemina alleged that during his first three months, his performance was satisfactory and he brought in new and former clients. He claimed that once Bankwise became embroiled in a controversy involving deposits of the Foreign Retirees Association, soliciting new depositors became difficult. He maintained that he suggested innovations to his immediate superiors, Pascua and Galapate, but they allegedly worked out promotional schemes without his participation, which failed to materialize. He claimed that afterward he was blamed for the failed schemes and subjected to harassment, including forcing him to file an indefinite leave of absence, demanding the return of his service vehicle, and delaying the release of his salaries and allowances.

Gemina left on leave for eleven (11) days, from January 17 to January 31, 2003. On his return, he claimed his salary for the leave period was withheld until he confronted Pascua and Galapate. He also asserted that his salary for February 1 to 15, 2003 was withheld and later released only in part, amounting to PHP 12,411.67 instead of PHP 25,000.00. On February 17, 2003, Bankwise, through Pascua and Galapate, directed him to turn over his service vehicle to Mr. Joselito Hogar, Head of the Corporate Services Department. On February 19, 2003, Gemina filed a complaint for constructive dismissal.

Bankwise’s Position: Contractual Performance Standards and Unreported Absences

Bankwise contended that the employment contract required Gemina to meet the fund level commitment of PHP 100,000,000.00 for the first six months, and that his performance would be monitored monthly starting from his sixth month. It asserted that as of December 27, 2002, nearly five months after the start of employment, Gemina had the lowest performance level among the fund management group, contributing only PHP 2,915,282.97 out of the PHP 100,000,000.00 fund level commitment. Bankwise stated that Gemina was called to attention and warned in January 2003 that inability to perform under the contract constituted a breach of contractual obligations.

Bankwise argued that despite warnings, Gemina went on leave for eleven (11) days from January 17 to 31, 2003 and later incurred absences without leave (AWOL) from February 1 to 15, 2003 without notifying the bank of the reason. Bankwise claimed that Pascua and Galapate tried to contact him and requested him to return the company vehicle, but he did not respond. On February 17, 2003, Pascua and Galapate issued a memorandum ordering Gemina to return the service vehicle; Gemina allegedly refused. Bankwise further asserted that on the next day, Gemina submitted a call report reflecting his work schedule for February 1 to 18, 2003, yet he did not report back to work and instead filed his complaint for illegal dismissal two days after receiving the vehicle return notice.

Proceedings Before the Labor Arbiter: Illegally Dismissed Through Constructive Dismissal

On April 30, 2004, the Labor Arbiter rendered a decision finding Gemina illegally dismissed. The Labor Arbiter ordered reinstatement to the former position without loss of seniority rights and benefits, and payment of backwages from the date of dismissal until actual reinstatement, plus ten percent attorneys fees on the total monetary awards then amounting to PHP 725,000.00, while dismissing all other claims.

The Labor Arbiter ruled that Bankwise officers committed acts constituting harassment amounting to constructive dismissal. It identified the alleged acts as: (one) deprivation of duties, benefits, and privileges; (two) delay in salary release; and (three) demand for return of the service vehicle intended to make Gemina feel uncomfortable and unwanted. The Labor Arbiter also ruled that the fund level commitment in the employment contract functioned merely as a standard for evaluating performance and was not a basis of employment, thus treating failure to generate deposits as not automatically grounded in contractual breach as a basis for dismissal.

Proceedings Before the NLRC: No Constructive Dismissal, but Abandonment of Work

On appeal, the NLRC reversed the Labor Arbiter’s decision. It held that Gemina was not constructively dismissed but had abandoned employment. The NLRC treated the complaint as failing to show a dismissal and instead concluded that the circumstances indicated abandonment, emphasizing that the bank had not dismissed Gemina but that he had disassociated himself from the employment.

On Gemina’s complaints about salary withholding, the NLRC addressed the alleged delay for the period January 17 to 31, 2003 and reasoned that during that leave period, his salary was still being processed because the personnel department needed to determine whether he had remaining accrued leave credits and whether these sufficed to cover the leave days. With respect to the salary for February 1 to 15, 2003, the NLRC stated that after his leave, Gemina incurred absences without leave. As to the demand for return of the service vehicle, the NLRC considered that the vehicle was temporarily assigned to Gemina, and it was demanded when he had no attendance record and had gone AWOL.

The NLRC also addressed the nature of the fund level commitment. It found Gemina’s argument that the fund level commitment was not a contractual duty to be untenable, reasoning that the commitment was part and parcel of the employment contract. It held that Gemina had the contractual obligation to fulfill the deposit generation target because he was hired as Marketing Officer in view of his claimed ability to generate deposits of more than PHP 100,000,000.00, and he failed to deliver this premise. The NLRC thus concluded that because there was no dismissal to begin with, the claim of constructive dismissal had no factual basis and instead constituted abandonment.

Proceedings Before the Court of Appeals: Petition Denied

Gemina pursued certiorari before the CA, seeking annulment of the NLRC decision. The CA denied the petition on July 17, 2006. The CA held that the employment contract specified the fund level commitment of PHP 100,000,000.00 for the first six months and that performance in generating deposits would be monitored monthly and reviewed on the sixth month. It found that as of December 27, 2002—Gemina’s fifth month—he had the lowest performance level in the fund management group, producing only PHP 2,915,282.97 out of PHP 100,000,000.00. The CA ruled that the warnings received from his supervisors were not calculated to harass him because they were linked to monitoring performance under the contract.

The CA further rejected Gemina’s claim that his salary for February 1 to 15, 2003 was intentionally withheld. It noted that Gemina’s attendance record for that period was received only on February 18, 2003, and reasoned that Gemina filed his complaint on February 19, 2003 without giving Bankwise enough time to compute his salary based on attendance and credit it. On November 7, 2006, the CA denied Gemina’s motion for reconsideration.

The Parties’ Contentions Before the Supreme Court

In his petition to the Supreme Court, Gemina argued that the CA erred in holding that he was not constructively dismissed, despite alleged harassment making continued employment unbearable. He pointed to alleged acts such as deletion of his name from an organizational chart in January 2003, while other officers who similarly failed to comply with deposit portfolio targets were retained. He reiterated his assertions that his salaries for January and February were withheld and that he was ordered to return his service vehicle for no apparent reason. He also contended that the CA erred in treating the fund level commitment as a condition of employment and maintained that filing a complaint was not motivated by any intent to preempt termination.

Bankwise, for its part, sustained the positions of the labor tribunals by maintaining that the complained acts were justified by legitimate management prerogatives and the circumstances of Gemina’s attendance and performance. It was also noted in the record that Bankwise was later declared insolvent and that the PDIC was designated as its receiver, with PDIC entering its appearance on February 29, 2008.

Legal Basis and Reasoning: Nature of the Fund Level Commitment and Constructive Dismissal Requirements

The Court addressed the conflict in the tribunals regarding the nature of the fund level commitment. It held that the fund level commitment of PHP 100,000,000.00 was indeed a term or condition in Gemina’s contract of employment. The Court reasoned that even if it was not per se an automatic ground for dismissal, it operated as the standard by which performance would be evaluated, consistent with the contractual statement that performance in generating deposits would be monitored monthly and reviewed on the sixth month.

The Court clarified that failure to comply with the commitment did not automatically lead to dismissal. Instead, Bankwise’s management had to evaluate performance and determine whether the failure translated into poor performance warranting termination based on periodic assessment. Still, the Court ruled that Gemina could not conveniently disregard the commitment, because it set a target that required sustained effort and could jeopardize continued employment

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