LABSTAN RECIT NOTES - ATTY.
MERCADER
Feb 23, 2022 Recitation
1. What are the provisions of the
constitution which apply to labor?
- Bill of Rights
- Art 13, Sec 3
a. What does the phrase “The State
shall afford full protection to
labor both domestic and
international” mean?
b. What’s the legal basis for the
protection of our laws to
international labor if the person
is a filipino?
c. For example, a filipino citizen is
employed to work in the US and
he executes a contract where he
will be a doctor in the US. Will
the PH law govern the validity
of the stipulations of the
contract?
d. What if the contract is entered
in the US?
e. Example: What if a Filipino is
directly hired by an offshore
company, which is a foreign
company. The employment
contract provides that the laws
of the UK shall govern the
contact which provides that they
may terminate the employment
at will. Subsequently, the
company decided to terminate
the employee without just cause.
The employee sued the
company without for illegal
dismissal. Will the suit prosper?
f. Non-impairment clause, would
it apply in the example stated?
2. Due Process in Labor, how does it
work?
a. If there is no cause in the
dismissal of the employee, what
is the effect? For example, the
employer observes procedural
due process, but not the
substantive due process, what is
the effect?
b. What if the employer is engaged
in the restaurant business and
saw employee X steal from the
cashier of the restaurant. The
manager fires him immediately.
Will the suit for illegal dismissal
prosper? Will there be reliefs
granted to the employee?
Nominal damages.
c. What are the just causes for
dismissal? Art 282 LC
d. What are the authorized causes?
Art 283 LC
e. When is nominal damages
awarded in cases of dismissals?
f. How much nominal damages?
30k for just cause. 50k for
Authorized causes
3. Jaka Food Processing Corporation v. Pacot,
G.R. No. 151378, 28 March 2005.
(dismissal due to authorized cause, nominal
damages awarded - 50k because procedural
due process is violated (giving of 30 day
notice to DOLE and employees)
4. Abbot Laboratories v. Alcaraz, G.R. No.
192571, 23 July 2013. (Probational
employment - just cause dismissal - nominal
damages 30k - proper procedure for the
regularization of a probational employee)
5. Duncan Association of Detailman-PTGWO
v. Glaxo Wellcome, G.R. No. 162994, 17
September 2005 (Glaxo does not impose an
absolute
prohibition against relationships between its
employees and those of competitor
companies. What the company merely seeks
to avoid is a conflict of interest.)
6. Example: X Colleges operates in Cebu and
opened a law school and hired professors.
LABSTAN RECIT NOTES - ATTY. MERCADER

The requirement is that the professors must

be fluent in Cebuano. One professor from
Manila, non-fluent in Cebuano, was hired
because they could not find someone, they
told him that it is temporary employment.
His employment will only continue if within
one year, he proves to be fluent in Cebuano.
He did not meet this condition. Is the
condition valid?
7. What is the rule with respect to the right to
counsel?
8. Punzal v. ETSI Technologies Inc., G.R. No.
170384, 9 March 2008
9. Example: An employer suspects that one of
the employee is stealing from the company.
They send the employee a notice to submit a
written explanation why he should not be
dismissed for stealing from the company. 5
days is given for him to submit the
explanation. And a hearing will be
conducted. The employee failed to submit
and attend the hearing. Thus the company
dismissed the employee due to his non
submission and appearance at the hearing. Is
the dismissal proper? Is this not proper
process that the company must give the
employee ample time to defend himself?
Silence can be taken as an admission of
guilt?
10. Right against self-incrimination
11. Social Justice Society v. Dangerous Drugs
Board and Philippine Drug Enforcement
Agency, G.R. No. 157870, 3 November
2008.
12. Can the employer for imposing the mandate
of drug testing, single out a particular
employee if there is a suspicion that he is
using drugs?
13. Example: An employer gives an employee
his own office with a lock, with a cabinet
with locks and provides him with the key.
Subsequently, there is suspicion of theft.
The employer instructs the personnel
holding all the duplicate keys to search
everywhere by unlocking the door and the
cabinet. They found the missing items in the
cabinet of X. They thus dismissed X. Is the
dismissal valid?
LABSTAN RECIT NOTES - ATTY. MERCADER

03/02/2022 a. Control on path to take

1. Test to determine the employer- 21. Orozco case
employee relationship? 22. Matling case
2. Payment of wages? a. His position is VP right? Is that
3. If nothing is paid, there can be no expressly appearing in its by-
payment of wages? laws?
4. In a situation who rendered some b. Who are considered corporate
service, and he is not paid, there is no officers?
payment of wages? c. Requirements why it should be
5. What if X asked Y to be a clerk in his appointed/elected?
business, and in exchange of which he 23. Republic v. Asiapro
will receive 600 per day and he will be a. How can they be both employer
paid 15th and 30th. On 15th and 30th he and employee of the
did not receive such wage, is there cooperative?
employer-employee relationship?
6. What if in same scenario, in exchange of
working he will get leftovers, will that
amount to payment?
7. In order to determine, payment of wages
what must be received must be legal
tender and if something else it will not
be considered payment of wages? Why?
8. same raw ba yung element of payment
of wages, sa wages na need maging
legal tender
9. THEN HE BENEFITS PA kung di nya
finollow yung payment?
a. Form of payment of wages?
10. Other elements?
11. What do you mean by control?
a. Give an example?
12. LVN Pictures v. phil Musician’s guild
13. Dy Ke Beh
a. Control
14. Tongko v. Manulife?
15. Difference between independent
contractor and employee
16. What is an independent contractor?
17. Corporal v. NLRC
18. Sonza v. ABS CBN
19. Calamba
a. Isn’t residency still a part of
their training?
20. Jardin case
LABSTAN RECIT NOTES - ATTY. MERCADER

March 9, 2022

1. What is Job -contracting?

2. Labor-only contracting?
1. Why is it prohibited?
3. Who are the parties in a job
contracting arrangement?
4. What are their respective
relationships?
5. Tenic Automotive Case
6. What can be validly outsourced?
7. Can a principal contract out a major
part of its business?
8. What are the requirements for a
contacting arrangement to be valid?
9. Substantial capital?
10. What is the rule with respect to
registration?
11. What is the effect if there is no
service agreement?
12. What if the principal contacts out
work and no service agreement is made,
what is the effect to the relationships?
13. What if the contractor fails to pay
the employees?
14. Can they sue the principal directly?
1. Without first directing to the
contractor for their unpaid wages?
2. They can implead one?
15. What if the principal and contractor
decides to dismiss one of the employees
because the employee tried to make a
union?
1. Can the principal be held solidarity
liable?
16. The contractor hires employees
which it deploys to the principal. 2 yrs is
the term. Before the end of the 2 yr
period, the principal decides to
predeterminate the contracting
LABSTAN RECIT NOTES - ATTY. MERCADER

March 23, 2022

LABSTAN RECIT NOTES - ATTY. MERCADER
March 30, 2022
1. What is direct hiring?
2. What about Local Employment
of Foreign Nationals? 8.
3. Do all foreign nationals require 9.
the AEP to work in the
Philippines? 10.
a. They do not need to do 11.
anything to have
employment in the PH?
(Certificate of 12.
Exclusion)
b. Exceptions and
Exclusions, are they the
same? What is the
difference?
4. What are the requirements in
securing an alien employment
permit? 13.
5. Labor Market Test
a. Rules on Publishing?
b. What is published?
c. When shall it be
published?
d. Where is it published?
6. Renewal of the AEP
a. What if a foreign
national applies for
AEP valid for 2 yrs,
before 2 yrs he resigns,
is the AEP still valid?
b. What is the ground for 14.
renewal?
7. What if an employee, a foreign
national, wants to engaged by a
filipino employer in the
philippines, and they enter into
a contract for a period of 2 yrs.
They sign a contract without 15.
securing an AEP. Without any 16.
cause he was dismissed in 6
mos. What are his reliefs, if
any?
a. Does the absence of
AEP prevent the
existence of an EE-ER
relationship?
Normal Hours of Work?
How do we know that an hour is
a work hour?
Rada v. NLRC
University of Pangasinan
Faculty Union v.University of
Pangasinan
Rule for Health Workers
a. Who are health
workers?
b. Are orderlies included?
c. Are janitors included?
d. Are they disqualified
from a compressed
work week?
What is Compressed Work
Week?
a. The reasons for the
CWW?
b. Is it only availed of to
avoid losses of the
company?
c. What if the employer
unilaterally changed the
schedule, reducing the
hours of work from
48hrs to 40hrs, will this
be valid?
Requirements for a CWW
a. Are employees entitled
to OT pay for the excess
of 8hrs?
b. When are the
employees allowed
overtime pay?
Linton Commercial v. Hellera
What is Telecommuting?
a. Rights granted to
workers rendering
telecommuting work?
LABSTAN RECIT NOTES - ATTY. MERCADER

17. Rule on Brownouts?

18. Durabilt Recapping Plant v.
NLRC
19. Rule on Meal Breaks?
a. When Compensable?
20. Pan American World Airways
System v. Pan American
Employees Association
21. Sime Darby Pilipinas v. NLRC
22. Philippine Airlines v. NLRC
23. Difference between “waiting to
be engaged” and “engaged to
wait”
24. Arica v. NLRC
LABSTAN RECIT NOTES - ATTY. MERCADER

April 20, 2022 26. Auto Bus vs. bautista

27. David vs. Macasio
1. Rules on Commute 28. Can the employer deny the application for a
2. What is Overtime work? leave?
3. How is it compensated?
4. What is the regular wage?
5. Does it include ECOLA?
6. Who are entitled to OT pay? Exceptions.
7. How much is OT pay?
8. The rates of OT pay?
9. What is a special working day?
10. Illustration: Employee works 8am-5pm.
Required to work until 7pm. Wage 480.
1. How much is he entitled?
2. Rest day
3. Rest day and Special day
4. Holiday
5. Holiday and rest day
11. What if he comes late? Will it affect OT?
12. Is employer consent necessary? Is right to
OT absolute?
13. Can the employer compel the employee to
perform OT work?
14. Rule to rest days?
15. What is a regular holiday?
16. What do the employees enjoy during a
regular holiday? Does it include ECOLA?
17. What if 2 regular holidays fall in the same
date? What will happen then?
18. What if the employee was absent on Holy
Wednesday, is he entitled to Maundy Thurs and
Friday?
19. What if he took a leave? With pay? Without
pay?
20. What about special holidays? Depends
whether working or non-working.
21. What are the special non-working holidays?
22. Who are Night Workers? 10% Addtl pay,
health assessments, transfer, mandatory
facilities
23. Illustration: Normal WH: 12nn-9pm. 2hrs
OT work. Daily wage is 480.
24. What is service incentive leave?
25. Are all employees entitled?
LABSTAN RECIT NOTES - ATTY. MERCADER

May 18, 2022 28. When you say, “integral part”, what do you
mean?
1. Wages? 29. How is that different from Boie Takeda?
2. IS vs. Quisumbing 30. So, because the commission was from their
3. What’s a minimum wage efforts, the compensation should be credited
4. Prevailing wage rate in Metro Manila? towards their wages?
5. Who are exempted? 31. What are service charges?
6. What is a BMBE? 32. What are the rules with respect to service
7. X owns an apartment complex. He hired a charges?
caretaker who collects rent, 3 janitors to clean.
Are they entitled to receive the minimum wage 33. Can the employer opt not to charge/collect
rate? ‘service charges’ on their customers?
1. Is the exemption automatic? 34. But how can they be included in the basic
2. Only registration is required? wage?But service charges are not fixed
8. Doctor wants to establish a clinic. He hires a amounts, how do you determine the amount to
nurse, a driver, a helper? Entitled to min wage? be distributed to the employees?
9. What about those who are paid on a task 35. What is 13th month pay?
basis? Entitled to min wage? 36. Who is not entitled to receive 13th month
10. What about a per piece basis? pay?
1. What if he produced less? 37. Central Azucarera de Tarlac v. Labor Union
11. Difference between wages and salaries?
12. Gaa vs. CA
13. What is a COLA?
14. Who are entitled to receive?
15. X is a construction worker who receives
600 daily wage? Entitled to ECOLA?
16. What are facilities?
17. What are supplements?
18. What is the difference between facilities
and supplements?
19. How do you know if the benefit is a facility
or supplement?
20. Mayon Hotel vs Adana
21. Our Haus vs Parian
22. What are commissions?
23. Does it not form part of his wage?
24. X is the owner of a spa. He employs
attendants (5). Their compensation is
commissions earned after they perform
services.
25. Is the employer obliged to pay the
difference ?
26. Even if paid purely on commission?
27. Philippine Duplicators Case
LABSTAN RECIT NOTES - ATTY. MERCADER
May 25 , 2022
1. What is non-diminution?
2. What does “ all benefits mean”?
3. What if employer is based on reg 6, the mw
is 500 a day. Employee is transferred in Manila
with mw of 537 a day. After a day, the
employee is transferred back. Can he return to
the original wage rate?
4. Is he entitled to the difference?
5. That does not equate to diminution of
benefits?
6. If an employer wishes to transfer employees
from 1 region to another, there is no
expectation that the employer would pay them
the higher prior wage?
7. What is company practice?
8. What does “long period of time mean?”
9. How many years? Is 2 years enough?
10. During the course of the year, employee
was able to prove the benefits given to him.
13th month pay was computed based on that.
Employer did this for 6 years. 7 years, they
found that the 13th month law requires only
basic salary. Company recomputed based on
basic salary only without the benefits for the
13th month? Is this violative of non-diminution
of benefits?
11. During CBA negotiations, the employers
and employees agreed that employer shall
provide employees 15 days of vacation and sick
leaves. And any accumulated sick leaves may
be converted to cash and vac leave is rolled
over. This is effective in 5 years. Upon renewal
of the agreement, the employer refused to give
the same incentives. Can the employees
demand the same incentives in the old
agreement citing that it is company practice?
12. Requisites for a company practice?
13. Bonus?
14. How is it different from other benefits?
15. Lepanto Ceramics?
16. Protacio vs Laya?
17. Can the employer make deductions from an
employer’s wage?
18. Exceptions?
19. Difference of requirement for written
authorization
20. The employee approaches the employer and
asks for a salary advance in the amount of 2000
on the 5th of the month. The employer agrees
and gives the advance. The employer deducted
in the 15th the advance. Can the employee
complain?
21. What if the employer made an error and
credited the salary of another employee to
another? Employer decides to deduct the error
on the 30th from the recipient of the erroneous
salary.
22. Rule on deposits
23. What are the other prohibitions with respect
to wages?
24. What does interference in the disposal of
wages mean?
25. Can the employer pay the employee in
goods?
26. Payment in bitcoin? is it allowed?
27. Milan vs NLRC?
28. What is wage distortion?
29. What are the requisites?
30. What if the employer has different classes
of employees paid in the prevailing min wage
of 500 pesos. 2nd group was paid in 560 pesos.
Employer increased the salaries of 1st group to
540 but did not increase the 2nd class? Wage
distortion?
31. Does this fall within the legally defined
wage distortion? Even if it is brought about by
the employer rather than the prevailing wage
rate?
32. What is the remedy to wage distortion?
33. What if for example, employers based on
Manila, it exectued a CBA with employees.
The employers and employees agreed that on
June 1 of every year from CBA, the employer
shall increase the salary of the employees of 33
pesos. June 1, salary was implemented. 537 -
LABSTAN RECIT NOTES - ATTY. MERCADER

570. June 3, mw took effect. Can the

employees demand additional to wage rate?
34. What if the mw is applied before June 1?
35. What if the employer borrows from a bank
10M in order to finance the purchase of a lot
and constraction of a building. The employer
executed a real estate mortgage over the lot and
bldg in favor of the bank. Blg was built but due
to business losses, it decided to close down. It
laid off employees and some were not paid
their salaries. These employees claim that the
assets should be made for the unpaid benefits
and wages?