Title
Gomez vs. Crossworld Marine Services, Inc.
Case
G.R. No. 220002
Decision Date
Aug 2, 2017
Seafarer injured on duty, assessed with Grade 8 disability; awarded partial disability benefits under ITF CBA, attorney’s fees, and legal interest.
permanent total disability benefits
back injury
ship
A

Case Summary (G.R. No. 137280)

Contractual and Legal Framework

Gomez’s employment was covered by a special agreement, ITF Uniform “TCC” Collective Agreement, effective at the time he served on M/V Elena VE. The legal bases invoked in the litigation included Articles 191 to 193 of the Labor Code, in relation to Rule X, Section 2 of the Amended Rules on Employees’ Compensation (as discussed through Vergara v. Hammonia Maritime Services, Inc.). The operative contract provisions were likewise discussed, particularly Section 20 (on compensation and benefits), and the rules on disability grading tied to Section 32 of the POEA contract schedule. The Court also referred to POEA Standard Employment Contract principles on the required company-designated medical examination, the period for declaring fitness or disability, and the role of a third doctor when there is disagreement.

Factual Background: The Injury, Treatment, and Repatriation

Gomez, then 42 years old, underwent a pre-employment medical examination and was declared fit to work before joining the vessel in Belgium on October 30, 2011. On February 29, 2012, he was ordered by the Chief Officer to remove ice from the lower and upper decks. While performing this task, he accidentally slipped and hit his lower back on the steel deck. He experienced immediate pain, reported the incident to his superior when he sought pain relievers, and continued working despite discomfort. After 15 days, by March 15, 2012, he could no longer tolerate the pain and sought medical examination from the vessel’s master. He was examined in Belgium, where x-ray imaging was performed, intravenous fluids were administered, and back injections were given twice. He was diagnosed with Lumbago, and the doctor recommended repatriation for further treatment. He was repatriated to the Philippines on March 18, 2012, arriving on March 19, 2012.

After repatriation, Gomez reported to the respondents the next day and requested further medical examination and treatment. He was referred to respondents’ accredited doctors at International Health Aide Diagnostic Services, Inc. (IHADS). He underwent six sessions of physical therapy, but lumbar pain persisted. On May 11, 2012, IHADS referred him for an MRI of the lumbosacral spine at University Physicians Medical Center, showing multilevel discogenic and osteophytic central canal and bilateral foraminal stenosis at L4-L5 and L5-S1, with disc dessication. On June 6, 2012, he was hospitalized at Medical Center Manila for two surgical procedures—lumbar laminectomy and foraminotomy—to address a herniated disc as advised by the company doctor. He was discharged on June 13, 2012. He then had follow-up assessments at IHADS on June 20, July 16, and August 17, 2012.

Medical Reports and the Competing Evaluations

On July 24, 2012, Dr. Ma. Dolores Tay (the company-designated doctor) submitted a report to Captain Eleazar Diaz. She stated that Gomez could walk without difficulty, but he complained of mild pain on the left buttock area upon prolonged sitting or standing. She allowed mild activities and issued an interim disability assessment of Grade 8 based on the POEA Contract Schedule of Disability. On August 18, 2012, Dr. Tay reiterated mild low back discomfort and advised ideal weight management. She noted that the attending spine surgeon recommended rehabilitation for flexibility and strengthening, and Gomez was referred to Dr. Emily P. Noche-Cabungcal for physical therapy. Although he completed six therapy sessions, he continued to complain of low back pain. On September 8, 2012, Dr. Noche-Cabungcal recommended the continuation of physical therapy.

Respondents’ position also relied on Dr. Tay’s September 11, 2012 report. She noted continued mild low back discomfort without neurologic deficits, that functional capacity testing was done according to job description but was not passed due to back pain on certain motions, and that Gomez should continue flexibility and strength exercises. She described the status as “status post laminectomy” and “ongoing physiotherapy,” and she stated that Gomez’s symptoms were subjective. She further reported that if Gomez passed functional capacity testing after adequate flexibility was attained, he could resume work at sea in about two to three more months. She maintained the interim disability assessment as unchanged at Grade 8.

Gomez, however, sought a second opinion from orthopedic surgeon Dr. Renato P. Runas. In a medical evaluation report dated September 7, 2012, Dr. Runas found that Gomez remained incapacitated due to lower back pain with numbness of the left lower extremity. The pain was triggered by exertion. Dr. Runas reported limited trunk motion due to pain, difficulty standing from a sitting position, and persistent moderate to severe chronic low back pain that was refractory to medications and physiotherapy management. He stated that the surgery lessened intensity but did not restore Gomez’s physical capacity for sea duty. He expressly opined that as an Ordinary Seaman, Gomez could no longer perform strenuous and heavy work, required complete activity modification, and was “unfit for sea duty in whatever capacity with a permanent disability.”

Administrative and Adjudicative History: Labor Arbiter and NLRC

When respondents refused payment of disability benefits, Gomez filed a complaint on September 13, 2012 before the Labor Arbiter, praying that his injury be declared work-related and total and permanent, and that respondents be held solidarily liable for permanent total disability benefits, moral and exemplary damages, and attorney’s fees. Respondents opposed, claiming that their medical report dated September 11, 2012 indicated Gomez could eventually resume sea duties, and thus they declined to pay permanent total disability benefits.

The Labor Arbiter, in a decision dated November 22, 2013, found Gomez permanently and totally disabled and could no longer resume sea duty. The Labor Arbiter relied on the September 11, 2012 medical report of Dr. Tay, which reflected failure to pass functional capacity testing and the need for continued exercises, while also considering that Gomez had not returned to his previous job for more than 120 days. It cited Crystal Shipping, Inc. v. Natividad, which stated that permanent disability is the inability to perform work for more than 120 days, regardless of whether use of any part of the body is lost. The Labor Arbiter also ruled that while the company-designated physicians did not categorically state permanent disability, they did not also declare Gomez fit for work with a Grade 8 impediment, and Gomez had not returned to work for more than 120 days. The Labor Arbiter held that Gomez’s employment was covered by the ITF Uniform “TCC” Collective Agreement, and it awarded disability compensation under Section 21(a) and (b) in the amount of US$156,816.00.

On appeal, the NLRC affirmed on April 11, 2013. It held that, considering Gomez’s medical condition as elaborated by his specialist and the observations of the company-designated doctors that back pain persisted despite surgery and rehabilitation for six months, it was inclined to believe that he was suffering from permanent total disability due to permanent impairment of earning capacity. The NLRC clarified that permanent total disability does not require absolute helplessness, but disablement to earn wages in the same kind of work or similar work. The NLRC similarly agreed that, because M/V Elena VE was covered by the ITF TCC CBA, Gomez was entitled to disability benefits under Disability 21(a) and (b) in the amount of US$156,816.00.

Court of Appeals’ Decision: Permanent Partial Disability (Grade 8) Under the Correct CBA Rate

Respondents then sought certiorari before the Court of Appeals, alleging grave abuse of discretion in affirming an award of full disability benefits under the ITF Standard Contract rate. The Court of Appeals framed the controversy as whether Gomez’s injury constituted permanent total disability, which would affect the rate of compensation. It found the evidence established that Gomez was permanently disabled such that he could not perform work he was trained for or accustomed to perform. It noted that despite extensive medical treatment for six months or 180 days, Dr. Tay’s assessment showed no remarkable progress, and surgery and rehabilitation did not entirely free Gomez from low back pain. The Court of Appeals also highlighted that Dr. Tay’s Grade 8 disability impediment remained unchanged and that Dr. Tay had recommended further therapy because Gomez had failed the functional capacity test.

The Court of Appeals recognized the contract rules on the company-designated doctor’s duty to declare fitness or unfitness, while also stating that a seafarer may seek independent evaluation. It referred to a framework for appointing a third doctor when disagreement arises, but it noted that the parties did not appoint such a third physician. It therefore evaluated the findings of the company-designated doctor, Dr. Tay, and Gomez’s private doctor, Dr. Runas, based on their inherent merit.

The Court of Appeals found no genuine inconsistency between the doctors’ findings. It treated Dr. Runas’s explicit declaration of permanent disability as persuasive against Dr. Tay’s more optimistic outlook, reasoning that if the more hopeful company doctor assessment were upheld, the seaman would be effectively denied disability compensation contrary to social justice principles that require doubt to be resolved in favor of the working man. Still, the Court of Appeals treated the issue of whether the disability was total or partial as distinct, and it observed that the NLRC failed to state a factual basis for declaring total disability. It noted that Dr. Runas did not mention a disability grade, and it referenced that Dr. Runas’s injury was not among those listed under Section 32 of the POEA SEC with Grade 1 impediment, which is considered total disability.

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