Title
Philippine National Bank vs. Cabansag
Case
G.R. No. 157010
Decision Date
Jun 21, 2005
Cabansag, an OFW, was illegally dismissed by PNB Singapore after probation. SC upheld NLRC’s ruling, affirming jurisdiction, proper venue, and awards for backwages, damages, and attorney’s fees.
illegal dismissal
labor law
due process

Case Summary (G.R. No. 157010)

Factual Background

Respondent, a Filipino, arrived in Singapore as a tourist in late 1998 and applied for employment with petitioner’s Singapore branch. The branch general manager, Ruben C. Tobias, recommended her employment to the bank president in Manila. The bank offered a temporary appointment by letter dated December 7, 1998, providing a three-month probation and termination notice provisions. Respondent secured an Employment Pass from Singapore authorities and, through the Philippine Embassy, obtained a POEA Overseas Employment Certificate on March 8, 1999. After favorable initial performance reports, respondent was pressured in April 1999 by branch personnel to resign and was told her position would be eliminated or replaced. She refused to resign and on April 20, 1999, received a letter terminating her employment.

Trial Court Proceedings

Respondent filed a complaint for illegal dismissal before the Labor Arbiter. On January 18, 2000, the Labor Arbiter found illegal dismissal, ordered reinstatement, awarded backwages in Singapore dollars and several statutory equivalents, and granted moral damages of PhP 200,000, exemplary damages of PhP 100,000, and attorneys’ fees in the amount of SGD 5,039.81. Petitioner appealed to the NLRC, which in a June 29, 2001 Resolution affirmed the Labor Arbiter’s decision but reduced moral damages to PhP 100,000 and exemplary damages to PhP 50,000; the NLRC thereafter denied reconsideration. Petitioner filed a petition for certiorari with the Court of Appeals, which dismissed the petition and denied reconsideration. Petitioner then sought review before the Supreme Court under Rule 45.

Issues Presented

Petitioner raised three principal issues: whether the NLRC arbitration branch in the National Capital Region had jurisdiction; whether the NLRC arbitration in NCR was the most convenient venue; and whether respondent was illegally dismissed and thus entitled to moral and exemplary damages and attorneys’ fees. Respondent also questioned the procedural propriety of invoking Rule 45 to review the CA decision.

Parties’ Contentions

PHILIPPINE NATIONAL BANK argued that Singapore law governed the employment relation, that respondent was a locally hired employee of the Singapore branch and thus not subject to Philippine labor tribunals, that the NLRC lacked jurisdiction or proper venue, and that its termination complied with the employment contract. FLORENCE O. CABANSAG maintained that she had been certified by the POEA as a bona fide contract worker and therefore was an overseas Filipino worker covered by Philippine labor laws, that she validly chose venue in Quezon City, that she was a regular employee at dismissal and was denied due process, and that awards of damages and attorneys’ fees were proper.

Procedural and Review Principles

The Court explained that petitions for certiorari from NLRC decisions ordinarily proceed by Rule 65 to the Court of Appeals and that review in the Supreme Court from CA decisions uses Rule 45. The Court reiterated that under Rule 45 it reviews questions of law; findings of fact by labor tribunals, affirmed by the CA and supported by substantial evidence, are accorded great respect and are conclusive absent palpable error.

Ruling

The Supreme Court denied the petition and affirmed the assailed Decision and Resolution of the Court of Appeals and the NLRC. Costs were imposed against petitioner.

Jurisdictional Reasoning

The Court held that labor arbiters and the NLRC possess original and exclusive jurisdiction over termination disputes and related claims under Art. 217, Labor Code, and that Section 10 of RA 8042 grants labor arbiters original and exclusive jurisdiction over claims involving Filipino workers for overseas deployment. The Court found that respondent’s POEA Overseas Employment Certificate rendered her an overseas Filipino worker covered by Philippine labor laws at the time of dismissal. The fact that petitioner operated through a Philippine corporation’s branch and that the appointment was approved by the bank president in Manila reinforced the application of Philippine law. The Court reiterated the principle from Royal Crown Internationale v. NLRC that Philippine labor and social legislation protects Filipino workers whether employed locally or overseas and that contract stipulations or foreign laws cannot render such statutes ineffective, consistent with Art. 17, Civil Code and the State’s labor policy under the 1987 Constitution.

Venue Reasoning

The Court applied Rule IV, Section 1(a) of the NLRC Rules of Procedure and the definition of migrant worker in RA 8042, observing that an OFW may file before the Regional Arbitration Branch where the complainant resides or where the employer’s principal office is situated. Respondent had returned to the Philippines and resided in Quezon City and therefore validly chose to file before the Quezon City RAB.

Merits — Probation, Due Process and Just Causes

The Court found that respondent had completed the three-month probationary period and therefore became a regular employee under Art. 281, Labor Code. As a regular employee she was entitled to procedural due process in dismissal, which requires two written notices and an opportunity to be heard. The Court determined that petitioner failed to notify respondent of any specific acts or omissions and denied her a meaningful opportunity to be heard, and that mere payment of one month’s salary in lieu of notice did not cure the lack of due process. Petitioner also did not establish any of the statutory just causes for termination enumerated in Arts. 282–284, Labor Code; its reliance on contractual termination provisions did n

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