Don Orestes Romualdez Electric Cooperative Employees Union-ALU-TUCP v. Don Orestes Romualdez Electric Cooperative, Inc.
REITERATIONFacts
The Antecedents: In 2012, the DORELCO Employees Union-ALU TUCP (Union) and Don Orestes Romualdez Electric Cooperative, Inc. (Company) submitted for arbitration the issue of whether rank-and-file employees were entitled to salary adjustments under their collective bargaining agreement. Subsequently, several employees retired. Some, like Gregorio Pingol, et al., refused to sign quitclaims pending the arbitration outcome, while others, like Epigenio S. Lumbre, et al., executed quitclaims to receive their retirement benefits. The National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB) voluntary arbitrator initially ruled on September 25, 2012, that employees were entitled to salary increases for 2010 and 2011. The Company then paid the benefits, including salary differentials, to Pingol, et al. Later, the Union pursued arbitration for Lumbre, et al., seeking salary adjustments for them. On September 22, 2017, the voluntary arbitrator ruled that Lumbre, et al. were not entitled to these increases because they had executed quitclaims upon retirement. Procedural History: The Union sought reconsideration of the voluntary arbitrator's September 22, 2017 decision, but this was denied on November 9, 2017. The Union received the denial on November 27, 2017. Subsequently, on December 12, 2017, the Union filed a Petition for Review under Rule 43 with the Court of Appeals (CA), challenging the voluntary arbitrator's ruling. The CA, in a Resolution dated March 8, 2018, dismissed the petition, finding it was filed 15 days after the Union received the arbitrator's denial of its motion for reconsideration, which the CA deemed improper and outside the 10-day finality period for voluntary arbitrator awards. The Union moved for reconsideration, citing case law that allowed motions for reconsideration and a subsequent appeal. However, the CA denied this motion on May 21, 2018, reiterating that the appeal was filed beyond the 10-day reglementary period from receipt of the arbitrator's decision, even considering the denial of the motion for reconsideration. The Petition: This Petition for Review on Certiorari under Rule 45 of the Rules of Court assails the CA's Resolutions that dismissed the Union's appeal. The Union argues that the proper period to appeal a voluntary arbitrator's decision to the CA should be 15 days from receipt of the denial of a motion for reconsideration, not the 10-day period applied by the CA. The Union also contends that the retired employees who executed quitclaims are still entitled to salary differentials under the collective bargaining agreement. Conversely, the Company maintains that the appeal period is strictly 10 days from notice, as provided by law, and that the quitclaims validly waived any further claims.
Issue(s)
Whether the Court of Appeals erred in dismissing the Union's petition for review based on the timeliness of the appeal. Whether the voluntary arbitrator's decision became final and executory within 10 calendar days from notice, precluding a motion for reconsideration and a subsequent appeal within 15 days from the denial of such motion. Whether the employees who executed quitclaims are entitled to salary adjustments under the CBA.
Ruling
The petition is meritorious. The Court of Appeals' Resolutions dated March 8, 2018 and May 21, 2018 in CA-G.R. CEB-SP No. 11429 are REVERSED and SET ASIDE. The case is REMANDED to the Court of Appeals for a proper resolution on the merits with dispatch.
Ratio Decidendi
On the timeliness of the appeal and the period to file a motion for reconsideration, and the application of the ruling to the case: The Court reiterated its ruling in Guagua National Colleges v. CA, which settled the confusion regarding the appeal period for voluntary arbitrators' decisions. Article 276 of the Labor Code states that the award or decision of a voluntary arbitrator shall be final and executory after 10 calendar days from notice. However, the Court clarified that this 10-day period is the time within which an aggrieved party may file a motion for reconsideration, consistent with the principle of exhaustion of administrative remedies. The Department of Labor and Employment's rules disallowing motions for reconsideration were deemed contrary to the legislative intent behind the Labor Code. Therefore, after the voluntary arbitrator's decision, a party has 10 days to file a motion for reconsideration. If the motion is denied, the aggrieved party then has 15 days from notice of the denial to file an appeal with the Court of Appeals under Rule 43 of the Rules of Court. The records showed that the Union received the voluntary arbitrator's resolution denying its motion for reconsideration on November 27, 2017. Following the clarified rule, the Union had 15 days from this date, or until December 12, 2017, to file its appeal with the CA. The Union filed its petition for review on December 12, 2017, which was well within the prescribed reglementary period. Thus, the CA erred in dismissing the petition solely on procedural grounds of tardiness. The case must be remanded to the CA for a resolution on the merits. On the applicability of Guagua National Colleges: The Court emphasized that the Guagua National Colleges ruling, though rendered after the assailed CA resolutions, is applicable. The Court's interpretation of a statute forms part of the law from the date of its enactment. The Court had also directed the Department of Labor and Employment and the NCMB to revise their rules to conform to the Guagua National Colleges decision. This indicates a clear directive to apply this interpretation prospectively and retrospectively where appropriate, especially in cases pending appeal. On the issue of entitlement to salary adjustments under the CBA: There is no ratio provided in the text for this issue. Therefore, no corresponding ratio can be provided.
Main Doctrine
The 10-day period under Article 276 of the Labor Code for appealing a Voluntary Arbitrator's decision is the period within which to file a motion for reconsideration. The aggrieved party may then appeal to the Court of Appeals within 15 days from notice of the denial of the motion for reconsideration, pursuant to Rule 43 of the Rules of Court.