U.P.
LAW BOC LABOR 2
Labor Organization v. Samahan ng mga
Manggagawang Nagkakaisa sa Manila Bay
Spinning Mills, G.R. No. 118562 (1996)]
[A] local union which has affiliated itself with a
federation is free to sever such affiliation
anytime and such disaffiliation cannot be
considered disloyalty. [Malayang Manggagawa
sa M. Greenfield v. Ramos, G.R. No. 113907
(2000)]
Effect of Disaffiliation
On legal personality
A registered independent union retains its legal
personality while a chartered local loses its
legal personality unless it registers itself.
No effect on CBA
A disaffiliation does not disturb the
enforceability and administration of a collective
agreement; it does not occasion a change of
administrators of the contract nor even an
amendment of the provisions thereof.
[Volkschel Labor Union v. BLR, No. L-45824
(1985)]
Obligation to pay union dues is
coterminous with membership
“The employees’ check-off authorization, even
if declared irrevocable, is good only as long as
they remain members of the union concerned”.
A contract between an employer and the
parent organization as bargaining agent for the
employees is terminated by the disaffiliation of
the local of which the employees are members.
[Volkschel Labor Union v. BLR, No. L-45824
(1985)]
Power to represent principal severed
By [the local union’s disaffiliation from the
federation], the vinculum that previously bound
the two entities was completely severed. [The
federation] was divested of any and all power
to act in representation of the union. Thus, any
act performed by [the federation] affecting the
interests and affairs of the [local union] is
rendered without force and effect. [ANGLO v.
Samana, G.R. No. 118562 (1996)]
(b) Substitutionary Doctrine
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LABOR LAW
The “substitutionary” doctrine provides that the
employees cannot revoke the validly executed
collective bargaining contract with their
employer by the simple expedient of changing
their bargaining agent.
It is in the light of this that the phrase “said new
agent would have to respect said contract”
must be understood. It only means that the
employees, thru their new bargaining agent,
cannot renege on their collective bargaining
contract, except of course to negotiate with
management for the shortening thereof.
[Benguet Consolidated v. BCI Employees and
Workers Union-PAFLU, G.R. No. L-24711
(1968)]
Conditions to apply the doctrine
1. Change of bargaining agent (through
affiliation, disaffiliation, or other means);
and
2. Existing CBA with the previous bargaining
agent [Benguet Consolidated v. BCI
Employees and Workers Union-PAFLU,
G.R. No. L-24711 (1998)]
Effects
1. New bargaining agent cannot revoke and
must respect the existing CBA; and
2. It may negotiate with management to
shorten the existing CBA’s lifetime.
B. BARGAINING UNIT
Definition
“Bargaining Unit” refers to a group of
employees sharing mutual interests within a
given employer unit, comprised of all or less
than all of the entire body of employees in the
employer unit or any specific occupational or
geographical grouping within such employer
unit. [Sec. 1(e), Rule I, Book V, IRR]
It is a group of employees of a given employer,
comprised of all or less than all of the entire
body of employees, which the collective
interests of all the employees indicate to be
best suited to serve reciprocal rights and duties
of the parties consistent with equity to the
U.P. LAW BOC LABOR 2
employer. [Belyca Corp. v. Calleja, G.R. No.
77395 (1988) citing Rothenberg]
Functions of an Appropriate Bargaining
Unit
1. An ELECTORAL DISTRICT. – It marks the
boundaries of those who may participate in
a certification election.
2. An ECONOMIC UNIT. – They are a group
of employees with community of interests.
3. A SOVEREIGN BODY. – It selects the sole
and exclusive bargaining agent.
Role of a bargaining unit
The labor organization designated or selected
by the majority of the employees in an
appropriate collective bargaining unit shall be
the exclusive representative of the employees
in such unit for the purpose of collective
bargaining. [Art. 267]
Right of individual or group of employees to
present grievances
An individual employee or group of employees
shall have the right at any time to present
grievances to their employer. [Art. 267]
CBA Coverage
It is a well-settled doctrine that the benefits of a
collective bargaining agreement extend to the
laborers and employees in the collective
bargaining unit, including those who do not
belong to the chosen bargaining labor
organization. [Mactan Workers Union v.
Aboitiz, G.R. No. L-30241 (1972)]
Note: An employee employed, whether for a
definite period is not, is an EE for purposes of
joining a union [Art. 292(c)]. But, whether or not
a union member, an EE part of the CBU is
entitled to CBA benefits unless excluded under
the CBA.
Effect of Prior Agreement
A prior CBA excluding a group of employees
from the bargaining unit of rank-and-file
employees does not bar the parties from
renewing the existing CBA and proposing and
discussing modifications or amendments
thereto during the freedom period. [De La Salle
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LABOR LAW
University v. DLSU Employees Association EA,
G.R. No. 109002, (2000)]
Rationale
A prior agreement as to the exclusion of
monthly-paid rank-and-file employees from the
bargaining union of the daily-paid rank-and-file
can never bind subsequent federations and
unions. as employees were not privy to that
agreement. And even if [they were privy, it can
never bind subsequent federations and unions
because it is a curtailment of the right to self­-
organization guaranteed by the labor laws
[General Rubber & Footwear Corp. v. BLR,
G.R. No. 74262 (1987)]
Corporate Entities
General Rule: Two companies having
separate juridical personalities shall NOT be
treated as a single bargaining unit. [Diatagon
Labor Federation Local v. Ople, G.R. No. L-
44493-94 (1980)]
Exception: Pervasive Unitary Aspect of
Management Doctrine
The cross-linking of the agencies’ command,
control, and communication systems indicate
their unitary corporate personality. Accordingly,
the veil of corporate fiction [...] should be lifted
for the purpose of allowing the employees of
the three agencies to form a single labor union.
A settled formulation of the doctrine of piercing
the corporate veil is that when two business
enterprises are owned, conducted, and
controlled by the same parties, both law and
equity will, when necessary to protect the rights
of third parties, disregard the legal fiction that
these two entities are distinct and treat them as
identical or as one and the same. [Ang Lee v.
Samahang Manggagawa ng Super
Lamination, G.R. No. 193816 (2016)]
Determining whether or not to establish
separate bargaining units
The fact that the businesses are related, that
some of the employees are the same persons
working in the other company and the physical
plants, offices and facilities are in the same
compound are NOT sufficient to justify piercing
the corporate veil. [Indophil Textile Mills
U.P. LAW BOC LABOR 2
Workers Union v. Calica, G.R. No. 96490
(1992)]
Spun-off corporations
The transformation of the companies is a
management prerogative and business
judgment which the courts cannot look into
unless it is contrary to law, public policy or
morals. [...] Considering the spin-offs, the
companies would consequently have their
respective and distinctive concerns in terms of
the nature of work, wages, hours of work and
other conditions of employment. [...] The nature
of their products and scales of business may
require different skills, volumes of work, and
working conditions which must necessarily be
commensurate by different compensation
packages. [San Miguel Union v. Confesor,
G.R. No. 111262 (1996)]
TEST TO DETERMINE THE CONSTITUENCY
OF AN APPROPRIATE BARGAINING UNIT –
4 Factors:
1. Will of the Employees (Globe Doctrine)
2. Affinity and unity of employees’ interest
(Substantial Mutual Interests Rule)
3. Prior collective bargaining history
4. Employment status [Democratic Labor
Association v. Cebu Stevedoring Co. Inc,
G.R. No. L-10321 (1958); University of the
Philippines v. Ferrer-Calleja, G.R. No.
96189 (1992)]
Note: Where the employment status was not at
issue but the nature of work of the employees
concerned; the Court stressed the importance
of the 2nd factor. [Belyca Corp. v. Calleja, G.R.
No. 77395 (1988)]
Other factors:
1. Geography and Location
2. Policy of avoiding fragmentation of the
bargaining unit
Globe Doctrine
A practice designated as the “Globe doctrine,”
sanctions the holding of a series of elections,
not for the purpose of allowing the group
receiving an overall majority of votes to
represent all employees, but for the specific
purpose of permitting the employees in each of
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LABOR LAW
the several categories to select the group
which each chooses as a bargaining unit.
[Kapisanan ng mga Manggagawa sa Manila
Road Co. v. Yard Crew Union, G.R. Nos. L-
16292-94 (1960)]
Rationale: Highly skilled or specialized
technical workers may choose to form their
own bargaining unit because they may be in
better position to bargain with the employer
considering the market value of their skills.
Community or Mutuality of Interests
The basic test in determining the appropriate
bargaining unit is that a unit, to be appropriate,
must affect a grouping of employees who have
substantial, mutual interests in wages, hours,
working conditions, and other subjects of
collective bargaining. [UP v. Ferrer-Calleja,
G.R. No. 96189, (1992)]
Rationale: There are greater chances of
success for the collective bargaining process.
The bargaining unit is designed to maintain the
mutuality of interest among the employees in
such unit.
When the interest between groups has
changed over time, there is reason to dissolve,
change or expand a certain bargaining unit.
Prior Collective Bargaining History
The existence of a prior collective bargaining
history is neither decisive nor conclusive in the
determination of what constitutes an
appropriate bargaining unit. [Sta. Lucia East
Commercial Corporation v. SOLE, G.R. No.
162355 (2009)]
Employment Status
Among the factors to be considered [is the]
employment status of the employees to be
affected [regular, casual, seasonal,
probationary, etc.], that is the positions and
categories of work to which they belong [....]
[Belyca Corp. v. Calleja, G.R. No. 77395
(1988)]
Geography and Location
Geography and location only play a significant
role if:
U.P. LAW BOC LABOR 2
a. The separation between the camps [...] and
the different kinds of work in each [...] all
militate in favor of the system of separate
bargaining units;
b. [When] the problems and interests of the
workers are peculiar in each camp or
department;
c. The system of having one collective
bargaining unit in each camp [...] [has
operated satisfactorily in the past.]
[Benguet Consolidated Inc. and Balatok
Mining Co. v. Bobok Lumberjack
Association, G.R. No. L-11029 (1958)]
Policy of Avoiding Fragmentation of the
Bargaining Unit
It bears noting that the goal of the DOLE is
[geared] towards “a single employer wide unit
which is more to the broader and greater
benefit of the employees working force.”
The philosophy is to avoid fragmentation of the
bargaining unit so as to strengthen the
employees’ bargaining power with the
management. To veer away from such goal
would be contrary, inimical and repugnant to
the objectives of a strong and dynamic
unionism. [Phil. Diamond Hotel and Resort Inc
v. Manila Diamond Hotel and Employees
Union, G.R. No. 158075 (2006)]
Confidential employees lumped with
management
Since the confidential employees are very few
in number and are, by practice and tradition,
identified with the supervisors in their role as
representatives of management, such identity
of interest has allowed their inclusion in the
bargaining unit of supervisors-managers for
purposes of collective bargaining in turn as
employees in relation to the company as their
employer. [Filoil Refinery Corp. v. Filoil
Supervisory and Confidential Employees
Union, G.R. No. L-26736 (1972)]
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LABOR LAW
C. BARGAINING
REPRESENTATIVE
The labor organization designated or selected
by the majority of the employees in an
appropriate collective bargaining unit shall be
the exclusive representative of the employees
in such unit for the purpose of collective
bargaining. [Art. 267]
Labor Management Council
Any provision of law to the contrary
notwithstanding, workers shall have the right:
a. To participate in policy and decision-
making processes of the establishment
where they are employed insofar as said
processes will directly affect their rights,
benefits and welfare.
b. To form labor-management councils, for
this purpose [Art. 267]
Selection of Representatives
In organized establishments,
• the workers’ representatives to the council
shall be nominated by the exclusive
bargaining representative.
In establishments where no legitimate labor
organization exists,
• the workers representative shall be elected
directly by the employees at large. [Sec. 2,
Rule XXI, Book V, IRR]
Qualification of Voters
Eligible Voter
Eligible voter refers to a voter belonging to the
appropriate bargaining unit that is the subject
of the petition for certification election [Sec.
1(q), Rule VIII, Book V, IRR]
All employees who are members of the
appropriate bargaining unit three (3) months
prior to the filing of the petition shall be eligible
to vote. [Sec. 6, Rule IX, Book V, IRR]
Note: Rule VIII, Sec. 14 (f) and Rule IX, Sec. 6
refer to employees as those employed 3
months prior to the issuance of the order/the
filing of the petition for certification election
U.P. LAW BOC LABOR 2
while Rule IX, Sec. 2 reckon the period of
employment from the “time of filing the
petition”. This difference has not been resolved
in any case before the Supreme Court.
All rank and file employees in the appropriate
bargaining unit, whether probationary or
permanent are entitled to vote. The Code
makes no distinction as to their employment
status. [...] All they need to be eligible to
support the petition is to belong to a bargaining
unit. [Airtime Specialists, Inc. v. Ferrer-Calleja,
G.R. No. 80612-16 (1990)]
Rationale for Non-Distinction Policy
Collective bargaining covers all aspects of the
employment relation and the resultant CBA
binds all employees in the bargaining unit. All
rank and file employees, probationary or
permanent, have a substantial interest in the
selection of the bargaining representative.
[Airtime Specialists, Inc. v Ferrer-Calleja,
supra.]
Dismissed employees [Sec. 6, Rule IX, Book
V, IRR]
General Rule: [Dismissed] employees [who]
contested legality of the dismissal in a forum of
appropriate jurisdiction at the time of the
issuance of the order for conduct of a
certification election
Exception: Dismissal was declared valid in a
final judgment at the time of the conduct of the
certification election.
Disagreement over voters’ list over
eligibility of voters
All contested voters shall be allowed to vote
[but] their votes shall be segregated and sealed
in individual envelopes. [Sec. 6, Rule IX, Book
V, IRR]
Voting List and Voters
The basis of determining voters may be agreed
upon by the parties (i.e. the use of payroll).
[Acoje Workers Union v. NAMAWU, G.R. No.
L-18848 (1963)]
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LABOR LAW
Non-participation in previous election has
no effect
[Failure to take part in previous elections is no
bar to the right to participate in future elections.]
No law, administrative rule or precedent
prescribes forfeiture of the right to vote by
reason of neglect to exercise the right in past
certification elections. [Reyes v. Trajano, G.R.
No. 84433 (1992)]
1. Determination of Representation
Status
Methods of Establishing Majority Status
a. Sole and Exclusive Bargaining Agent
(SEBA) Certification
b. Consent Election
c. Certification Election
d. Run-Off Election
e. Re-Run election
Note: D.O. No. 40-I-15 replaced Voluntary
Recognition with SEBA certification, as of
September 7, 2015.
a. SEBA Certification
PROCEDURE [RULE VII, BOOK V, IRR]
1. File Request for SEBA Certification [Sec.
1]
Who: Any legitimate labor organization
File where: Regional Office which issued
its certificate of registration or certificate of
creation of chartered local
2. Indicate in the request [Sec. 2]:
a. Name and address of the requesting
legitimate labor organization;
b. Name and address of the company
where it operates;
c. Bargaining unit sought to be
represented;
d. Approximate number of employees in
the bargaining unit; and
e. Statement of the existence/non-
existence of other labor
organization/CBA.