Philippine National Oil Company-Energy Development Corporation v. Leogardo
REITERATIONFacts
The Antecedents: Petitioner Philippine National Oil Company-Energy Development Corporation (PNOC-EDC), a subsidiary of PNOC, filed a clearance application to dismiss Vicente D. Ellelina, a contractual employee, for allegedly committing Alarm or Public Scandal during a Christmas party. The incident involved Ellelina attempting to grab an armalite rifle from a PC Officer after being denied a prize for his lost winning raffle ticket. Procedural History: The Ministry of Labor and Employment (MOLE) initially granted the clearance but later revoked it, ordering reinstatement with backwages. The Minister of Labor, through the Deputy Minister, affirmed this order upon appeal. The Petition: PNOC-EDC filed a Petition for Certiorari, assailing the Deputy Minister's order for lack of jurisdiction, arguing that as a government-owned or controlled corporation, it is governed by the Civil Service Law, not the Labor Code, and that Ellelina's dismissal was justified.
Issue(s)
Whether the Ministry of Labor and Employment has jurisdiction over petitioner PNOC-EDC. Whether Ellelina's dismissal was justified.
Ruling
The Petition is DISMISSED, and the judgment of respondent public official is AFFIRMED. Reinstatement ordered by public respondent, without loss of seniority rights, is proper. Backwages are limited to three years from February 1, 1978.
Ratio Decidendi
On the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Labor and Employment: The Court held that PNOC-EDC, having been incorporated under the general Corporation Law, is a government-owned or controlled corporation whose employees are subject to the provisions of the Labor Code. This is consistent with the ruling in NASECO vs. NLRC, which clarified that under the present Constitution, government corporations created by special charter are subject to Civil Service Law, while those incorporated under the general Corporation Law are not. The Court reiterated the doctrine that employees of government-owned or controlled corporations, whether created by special law or formed as subsidiaries under the general Corporation Law, are governed by the Civil Service Law and not by the Labor Code, as laid down in National Housing Corporation vs. Juco, but clarified that this doctrine has been supplanted by the present Constitution. The present Constitution provides that the Civil Service embraces all branches, subdivisions, instrumentalities, and agencies of the Government, including government-owned or controlled corporations with original charters. Therefore, government corporations not created by special charter, but incorporated under the general Corporation Law, are not within the coverage of Civil Service Law and are thus subject to the Labor Code. On the justification for Ellelina's dismissal: The Court found the dismissal to be too harsh a penalty considering the nature of the act committed and that it was Ellelina's first offense. Therefore, the reinstatement ordered by the public respondent, without loss of seniority rights, was deemed proper. However, consistent with the Court's rulings, backwages were limited to three years from February 1, 1978.
Main Doctrine
Government-owned or controlled corporations incorporated under the general Corporation Law are subject to the Labor Code, not the Civil Service Law, for purposes of employment relations.