Construction and defined terms
- The Rules are construed to result in a just, expeditious and inexpensive settlement of labor disputes through conciliation-mediation (Section 1, Rule I).
- “Conciliation-Mediation” refers to the dispute management process conducted by the SEADO to facilitate an amicable settlement (Section 2[a], Rule I).
- “Labor Disputes” refers to all issues or conflicts covered by the Rules (Section 2[b], Rule I).
- “Referral” is the indorsement of unsettled issues through a document issued by the SEADO referring unresolved issues to the appropriate DOLE Office or Agency with jurisdiction; it contains parties’ names and addresses, stipulated and admitted facts, summary of unresolved issues, causes of action, and relief sought—without prejudice to amendments of the complaint before the office/agency with jurisdiction (Section 2[c], Rule I).
- “Request for Assistance (RFA)” is the request for the conduct of conciliation-mediation under SENA to help the parties arrive at a settlement agreement (Section 2[d], Rule I).
- “Requesting Party” includes an employee, group of employees, employer, or union who files an RFA (Section 2[e], Rule I).
- “Responding Party” includes an employee, group of employees, employer, or union requested to appear for conciliation-mediation under SENA (Section 2[f], Rule I).
- “Single Entry Approach or SENA” is an administrative approach for speedy, impartial, inexpensive, and accessible settlement of all labor issues or conflicts, using conciliation-mediation as immediate intervention to effect amicable settlement and prevent disputes from ripening into full-blown disputes (Section 2[g], Rule I).
- “Single Entry Assistance Desk or SEAD” is the desk/unit in DOLE Central/Regional/Provincial/Field Offices and attached agencies providing conciliation-mediation services or assistance under SENA (Section 2[h], Rule I).
- “Single Entry Assistance Desk Officer (SEADO)” is the person designated to provide assessment, evaluation, counseling, and conciliation-mediation services before the filing of any labor complaint or dispute (Section 2[i], Rule I).
- “30-day mandatory conciliation-mediation period” is the 30 calendar days maximum within which to conduct mandatory conciliation-mediation proceedings and refer the issue if unsettled (Section 2[j], Rule I).
Coverage, scope, and exclusions
- The Rules apply, as far as practicable, to:
- Termination or suspension of employment issues (Section 3[a], Rule I).
- Claims for any sum of money, regardless of amount (Section 3[b], Rule I).
- Intra-union and inter-union issues except petitions for certification election, after exhaustion of administrative remedies (Section 3[c], Rule I).
- Unfair Labor Practice (Section 3[d], Rule I).
- Closures, retrenchments, redundancies, temporary lay-offs (Section 3[e], Rule I).
- OFW cases (Section 3[f], Rule I).
- Occupational safety and health standards issues, except those involving imminent danger situation (Section 3[g], Rule I).
- Issues arising from other labor and related issuances (OLRI) (Section 3[h], Rule I).
- Any other claims arising from an employer-employee relationship (Section 3[i], Rule I).
- Cases under the administrative and quasi-judicial jurisdiction of all DOLE offices and attached agencies, including the NLRC (Section 3[j], Rule I).
- The Rules do not cover:
- Notices of strikes or lockouts, or preventive mediation cases, which remain with the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB) (Section 3[j][1], Rule I).
- Issues involving interpretation/implementation of the collective bargaining agreement, and issues involving interpretation/enforcement of company personnel policies, which should be processed through the Grievance Machinery and voluntary arbitration (Section 3[j][2], Rule I).
- Issues involving violations of permits, licenses, or registrations including:
- Alien Employment Permit (AEP) (Section 3[j][3][i], Rule I).
- PRPA authority or license (Section 3[j][3][ii], Rule I).
- Working child permit (WCP) and violations of Republic Act No. 9231 (Anti-Child Labor Law) (Section 3[j][3][iii], Rule I).
- Registration under Department Order No. 18-02 (Section 3[j][3][iv], Rule I).
- POEA-issued licenses under the Migrant Workers Act, as amended (Section 3[j][3][v], Rule I).
- Professional license issued by the PRC (Section 3[j][3][vi], Rule I).
- TESDA accreditations (Section 3[j][3][vii], Rule I).
- Other similar permits, licenses, or registrations issued by DOLE or its attached agencies (Section 3[j][3][viii], Rule I).
Filing an RFA: location, evaluation, docketing
- The Request for Assistance (RFA) must be filed at any SEAD or unit in the region/provincial/district/field office where the employer principally operates (Section 1, Rule II).
- If a union or federation represents a local chapter, the RFA must be filed at the regional/provincial/district/field office where the union or local chapter is registered (Section 1, Rule II).
- If two or more RFAs involving the same responding party are filed before different SEADs within the same region, the requests must be endorsed to the SEAD where the employer principally operates or where the union/local chapter is registered (Section 1, Rule II).
- If an RFA is filed with a SEAD most convenient to the requesting party but outside the region where the employer principally operates, the SEADO may proceed only if the same is not objected to by the employer; upon objection, the SEADO must immediately refer the request to the appropriate agency (Section 1, Rule II).
- Upon receiving assistance requests, the SEAD must interview the requesting party for evaluation and advise objectives and procedures of the SENA Program (Section 2[a], Rule II).
- After the interview, the requesting employee/group, employer, or union may accomplish the required RFA Form with SEADO assistance; the SEADO must enter it in the SEnA Logbook indicating:
- reference number;
- date of filing;
- names and addresses of requesting and responding parties;
- pendency of similar or related cases;
- nature and subject of the grievance/request; and
- disposition (Section 2[b], Rule II).
- The SEADO handling the RFA must assign a docket number using this format:
- SEAD (Name Regional Office)-(Province/Field/District Office)-(No. of Request under the Region)-(Month) - (Year) (Section 2[c], Rule II).
- The SEADO must immediately schedule the initial conference after docketing (Section 2[d], Rule II).
Conference notice and SEAD handling
- The SEADO uses the SEnA Notice Form and may serve notice by:
- personal service;
- registered mail;
- electronic mail;
- courier;
- facsimile; or
- any other fast, economical, and effective mode of notifying the parties based on prevailing circumstances within the SEADO’s area of responsibility (Section 3, Rule II).
- Where the complaint/request for assistance is accounted for through a letter, e-mail, or referral, the Head of Office must respond by:
- explaining the procedures of the SENA Program; and
- requiring the personal appearance of the complainant to the SEAD per Section 1, Rule II (Section 4, Rule II).
- For anonymous RFAs/complaints, the SEADO must verify by requesting an interview with the responding party to facilitate compliance/correction if violations exist (Section 5, Rule II).
- If the responding party refuses or fails to appear at the scheduled interview, the Head of Office must direct an inspection in the establishment; compliance/correction of violations found must be facilitated through conciliation-mediation (Section 5, Rule II).
SEADO duties and conciliation process
- The SEADO must exert best efforts to assist parties reach a settlement (Section 1, Rule III).
- In facilitating conciliation, the SEADO must:
- clarify issues and narrow disagreements;
- validate positions and the relief sought;
- encourage options and stipulations;
- offer proposals and options for mutually acceptable solutions and voluntary settlement; and
- facilitate preparation of settlement documents (Section 1, Rule III).
- The SEADO must conduct conferences with utmost courtesy and integrity, with the first and primary duty to implement Department Order No. 107, series of 2010 (Section 2, Rule III).
- The SEADO’s conduct must reflect:
- speedy, impartial, inexpensive, and accessible settlement services; and
- promotion of conciliation-mediation as the primary mode, with referral only of unresolved issues to either voluntary arbitration (if both parties agree) or compulsory arbitration to the NLRC or appropriate DOLE agency/office (Section 2[b], Rule III).
- The SEADO may hold as many conferences as necessary within the 30-day mandatory conciliation-mediation period (Section 1[a], Rule IV).
- Conference resetting is allowed only on meritorious grounds and if the other party concurs; the conference must be held not later than 3 days from the original scheduled conference (Section 1[b], Rule IV).
- The 30-day period may be extended only for a maximum of 7 days when parties mutually agree (Section 1[c], Rule IV).
- In labor standards (including occupational safety and health standards issues), SEADO conciliation-mediation must focus on expeditious, non-litigious compliance by the responding party and ensuring implementation of corrective measures for identified violations (Section 2[a], Rule IV).
- In inter-intra union issues, conciliation-mediation must facilitate settlement or an agreed expeditious process to resolve issues and must not add a layer to periods set in Department Order No. 40, series of 2003, as amended (Section 2[b], Rule IV).
- Parties must personally appear at all times as far as practicable (Section 3[a], Rule IV).
- Lawyers may join only to render advice to clients (Section 3[b], Rule IV).
- Lawyers, agents, or attorneys-in-fact may represent parties if they show a special power of attorney granting authority to represent and enter into a binding agreement (Section 3[c], Rule IV).
Mandatory period: pre-termination and closure
- Within the 30-day period, any or both parties may pre-terminate proceedings by:
- verbal or written withdrawal by the requesting party;
- withdrawal due to disinterest from non-appearance of the requesting party in two (2) scheduled consecutive conferences despite due notice;
- request for referral by the requesting party to the appropriate DOLE office or agency with jurisdiction;
- non-appearance of the responding party in two (2) scheduled consecutive conferences despite due notice; or
- non-submission/resistance of the responding party to conciliation-mediation (Section 4, Rule IV).
- SEnA proceedings close and terminate upon:
- pre-termination under Section 4;
- expiration of the 30-day mandatory period unless both parties mutually request extension; or
- full compliance with the settlement agreement (Section 5, Rule IV).
- Upon full compliance with the settlement agreement, termination occurs automatically (Section 6, Rule IV).
- A party may submit a written report of non-compliance within 2 weeks from the date of agreement or agreed period of compliance; failure to submit renders the settlement agreement deemed duly complied with, absent proof to the contrary (Section 6, Rule IV).
Referral issuance and contents
- The SEADO must issue the Referral without delay on the date of termination of conciliation-mediation to the party who filed the RFA (Section 7, Rule IV).
- The Referral must be submitted to the appropriate DOLE office/agency named therein or to voluntary arbitration if both parties agree, for compliance with the 30-day mandatory conciliation-mediation process (Section 7, Rule IV).
- The SEADO must issue a Referral motu proprio when:
- the 30-day mandatory conciliation-mediation period expires unless a request for extension exists;
- the parties fail to reach an agreement within the 30-day period; or
- the requesting party fails to appear in two (2) scheduled consecutive conferences despite due notice (Section 7, Rule IV).
- For pre-termination, the Referral must be issued upon request of any or both parties (Section 7, Rule IV).
- Delay in Referral issuance is handled as an administrative offense (Section 7, Rule IV).
- The Referral must contain the parties’ names and addresses, summary of unresolved issues, causes of action, and relief sought—without prejudice to amendments before the office/agency with jurisdiction; for voluntary arbitration, it must specify issues to be arbitrated (Section 8, Rule IV).
Confidentiality, records, and minutes
- Confidential information and statements made during conciliation-mediation are privileged communications and cannot be used as evidence in arbitration proceedings except for:
- stipulations of facts forming part of the settlement under Rule V;
- facts of common knowledge; or
- waiver of confidentiality (Section 9[a], Rule IV).
- Contents appearing in the proceedings minutes (SEnA Minutes Form) and the SEADO’s or parties’ personal notes are subject to the confidentiality limits in Section 9[a] (Section 9[b], Rule IV).
- Voice or video recorders or any electronic recording device are prohibited during proceedings (Section 9[c], Rule IV).
Settlement agreements: form, finality, and fairness
- For voluntary settlement, the SEADO must reduce the agreement into writing using the SENA Settlement Form reflecting all stipulations agreed upon (Section 1[a], Rule V).
- For monetary claims arising from labor standards law violations, the SEADO must endeavor to facilitate full settlement and attach a duly accomplished waiver and quitclaim as proof of full compliance (Section 1[b], Rule V).
- If payment is in installments/tranches, the waiver and quitclaim must be executed only upon payment of the last installment (Section 1[c], Rule V).
- For partial settlements, only stipulations relating to settled issues must be stated; unresolved issues must be referred to the appropriate DOLE office/agency (Section 1[d], Rule V).
- The SEADO must use the language or dialect understood by both parties, as far as practicable (Section 1[e], Rule V).
- The SEADO must explain the agreement contents to the parties before signing; the SEADO must sign in the parties’ presence and attest that it is the true and voluntary act of the parties (Section 1[f], Rule V).
- Any settlement agreement reached by the parties before the SEADO is final and binding (Section 2, Rule V).
- For compromises of monetary claims from labor standards law violations:
- the compromise amount must be fair and reasonable and not contrary to law, public morals, and public policy (Section 3, Rule V);
- fairness/reasonableness depends on totality of circumstances, degree of voluntariness, and credibility of consideration;
- insistence on accepting a given amount despite knowing rightful claims creates a presumption of absence of fraud, violence, or coercion and supports voluntariness; and
- these circumstances must be fully disclosed in the settlement agreement (Section 3, Rule V).
Monitoring, enforcement, and retaliatory action
- The SEADO must monitor voluntary and faithful compliance by requiring the parties, under oath, to submit a written report of compliance or non-compliance within 2 weeks from agreement date or the agreed compliance period (Section 4, Rule V).
- A copy of the settlement agreement must be submitted to the appropriate office/agency having jurisdiction over the issues therein (Section 4, Rule V).
- If the settlement involves payment of monetary claims, the payment must be made in the SEAD and in the presence of the SEADO (Section 4, Rule V).
- If a settlement report is for a “show” or if the settlement amount is reported as retrieved/confiscated by the responding party, the Head of Office summons both parties; the Head verifies, and if there is prima facie proof the settlement was staged, the responding party must be required to pay the requesting party the full settlement amount with legal interest reckoned from the settlement date (Section 4, Rule V).
- Any retaliatory action against the requesting party by the responding party is strictly construed against the responding party (Section 5, Rule V).
Non-compliance remedies and execution
- If the responding party does not comply, the requesting party may:
- disregard the settlement agreement and file the appropriate case before the proper forum, or
- enforce the agreement terms (Section 6, Rule V).
- For enforcement, the requesting party must request a Referral from the SEADO to the Proper Regional Arbitration Branch (RAB) of the NLRC for enforcement of the agreement pursuant to Rule V, Sec. 1 (i) of the 2005 Revised NLRC Rules, as amended; the RAB must docket it as an arbitration case for enforcement of the settlement (Section 6, Rule V).
- Upon agreement of the parties, or when the cause of action is within the jurisdiction of the office/agency where the SEAD is lodged, the appropriate DOLE Office/Agency may execute the settlement agreement (Section 6, Rule V).
Regional coordination, reporting, training, and supplementation
- The Regional Coordinating Council (RCC) with tripartite participation must establish as many SEADs as it deems appropriate based on the number of SEADOs and case volume (Section 1, Rule VI).
- At the regional level, the RCC must establish SEADs at:
- the Regional Arbitration Branch of the NLRC;
- the Regional Branch of the NCMB;
- the DOLE Regional Office; and
- the regional offices of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) and Overseas Workers’ Welfare Administration (OWWA) (Section 1, Rule VI).
- At the provincial/district/field level, the RCC must establish one SEAD in every provincial/district/field office of the DOLE (Section 1, Rule VI).
- The Regional Director, as head of the RCC, must ensure effective implementation in the region by:
- evaluating delivery of conciliation-mediation services by RCC members;
- regularly convening the RCC on SEnA matters with tripartite partners;
- formulating an RCC implementation plan with specific targets for regional performance improvement; and
- regularly submitting a performance monitoring report of RCC members (Section 2, Rule VI).
- SEADOs must report accomplishments using a prescribed form to the DOLE Regional Director as head of the RCC; the DOLE Regional Director must consolidate and submit reports to the Secretary of Labor and Employment through the Undersecretary for Labor Relations (Section 3, Rule VI).
- The Human Resource Development Services (HRDS) and the NCMB must form a National and Regional Training Team to ensure delivery of training requirements for conciliation-mediation, mobilizing all personnel who have completed the ILO conducted Trainers’ Training on Conciliation-Mediation; the HRDS leads training and submits a Coordinative Training Plan to the Undersecretary for Labor Relations every year-end and planning activity of the DOLE (Section 4, Rule VI).
- If no provision applies in the Rules, and to carry out their objectives, the pertinent provisions of DOLE NCMB rules on conciliation-mediation may be applied by analogy or in a suppletory character to achieve expeditious settlement when practicable and convenient (Section 5, Rule VI).
Effectivity date and signatory
- The Rules were dated in City of Manila and signed on 25 February 2011 by Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz, Secretary (Section 1, Rule VII and signature block).