Danao Development Corporation v. National Labor Relations Commission

SECOND DIVISION G.R. No. L-40706-07 February 16, 1978 DANAO DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION, petitioner, vs. NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS COMMISSION, JOSUE DE JOSE, in his capacity as Provincial Sheriff of Negros Occidental, Negros Occidental Free Laborers Association (NOFLA-ALU), FELIZARDO AGRAVANTE; SIMEON AGRAVANTE; MONICO ALBINA; ALEJANDRO ALSADO; ANECITO ALSADO; ANTONIO ALSADO; heirs, successors, and/or assigns of SIMPLICIO ALSADO; JESUS ALURAN; SIMPLICIO ALURAN; ANDRES AMORA; MANUEL AMORA; SERGIO AMORA; LEOVIGILDO ANACLETO; CESAR ARANDA; DOMINADOR ARANDA; BENJAMIN ARTAJO; CIRILO ARTAJO; ROMAN ARTAJO; SAMUEL ARTAJO; RODRIGO DE ASIS; ROMEO RARICUATRO JORGE PATICAS; MANUEL BAYNOSA; PACIFICO BENIGNOS; heirs, successors, and/or assigns of NARCISO BERNACER; TEOFILO BERNANCILLO; MARIANO BIA-IS; ROBERTO BI-AY; VICENTE BI-AY; heirs, successors, and/or assigns of NICOLAS BORONG; FRANCISCO CABAHUG; FELIPE CABERTE; SERAFIN CAJUCSON; ANATALIO CAJUELAN; ARTEMIO CARVELLEDA; MORETO CARVELLEDA; ALFREDO CASTILLON; EDUARDO CENTINA, SERAFIN CHIVA; DOMINGO CUSTODIO; CATALINO DALOGDOG; BARTOLOME DENSON; LIBERADO DETECIO; IGMEDIO DIAMA; FELIZARDO DIAMANTE; HILARION DOGOMEO; heirs, successors and/or assigns of VICTORINO DOGOMEO; ROMEO ESCAMOS; LORENZO FORTUNA; RUFILLO GARCIA; DOMINGO GEMINO; FLORENCIO GEMINO DOMINADOR GEMPESALA; heirs, successors and/or assigns of ROGELIO GLARAGA; DOMINADOR GARCIA; BENEDICTO HILAY; RUFINO INTES; DIOSCORO JAPITAN; SERGIO JAPITAN; JOSE JUGADORA; LORENZO JUGADORA; RUPERTO LACARES; JOSE LADENES; PEDRO LEDESMA; JR., JUANITO LEYTE; VICTORINO LEYTE; DIOSCORO LIBONGCOGON; FELOMINO LI-UGAN; ELENO LONGAKIT; PANFILO LUMAPAY; JOSE MABILOG; HERMINIGILDO MACAPAS; MACARIO MACAPAS; MOISES MACAPAS; VICTOR MAGLASANG; FORTUNATO MAHILUM; JESUS MALAGSIC; GALO MALUPAY; ROMAN MALUPAY, heirs, successors, and/or assigns of REYNALDO MARCELLA; CARLOS PABUAYA; BENITO PALMA; IGNACIO PALMA; heirs, successors, and/or assigns of CAYETANO PANLA-AN; heirs, successors, and/or assigns of FULGENCIO PANLA-AN; HERMOGENES PATINO; SALUSTIANO DE LA PEÑA; SERGIO DE LA PEÑA; heirs, successors, and/or assigns of FELIMON PERFECTO; BALBINO PESANON; CASIANO PESANON; FEDERICO PESANON; RICARDO PESANON; NEMESIO RACHO; PACIANO RACHO; ANGELINO SAGA; FRUCTUOSO SAGA, JR.; CATALINO SATO; NICANOR SATO; heirs, successors and/or assigns of EVANGELISTA SELDORA; EMILIO SILVA; LEONARDO SISON; heirs, successors and/or assigns of JOSE TALEON; MANUEL TALEON; ALBERTO TANIACAO; JOSE TARDAGUELA; RAMON TARDAGUELA; ESMERALDO TERANTE; ZOSIMO TIJAMO; MELITON TOMBAGA; IGNACIO TUEREZ; JOSE TUVILLA; PEDRO VALDIVIA; heirs, successors and/or assigns of ALBINO VILLAGORDA; heirs, successors and/or assigns of EDILBERTO VILLAGORDA; heirs, successors and/or assigns of ANDRES VILLAR; PLACIDO VISITACION; and JOSE ZAMORA, respondents.

Manuel B. Tomacruz for petitioner. Seno, Mendoza & Associates for private respondents. Office of the Solicitor General for respondent Commission, et al. BARREDO,J.: Petition for certiorari and prohibition impugning the writ of execution and the garnishment made under it in Cases Nos. 134-ULP-ILO of the National Labor Relations Commission entitled Negros Occidental Free Laborers Association (NOFLA.

ALU) et al. vs. Danao Development Corporation, petitioner contending that the decision being attempted to be executed is not yet final. On February 20, 1974, the defunct Court of Industrial Relations rendered a resolution en banc in above-mentioned Case Nos. 134-ULP-ILO with the following dispositive portion: We, therefore, vote for the setting aside of the Decision of the Trial Court, dated April 11, 1972, in the above-entitled cases, and, consequently, to find the respondents guilty of the unfair labor practice acts complained of, with the affirmative relief of reinstatement of complainants to their former or substantially equivalent positions, with back wages from the date of dismissal up to the date when this case was submitted for decision before the Trial Court, and the grant of their specific reliefs prayed for. Said resolution was appealed to the Supreme Court in G.R.Nos. L-38407 and L-38408, where it was affirmed on June 7, 1974.

On October 16, 1974, the Court of Industrial Relations issued the corresponding writ of execution for the reinstatement thus ordered of the 119 complainants. Later, an alias writ was issued and according to the return of the sheriff dated February 21, 1975, he was unable to effect any reinstatement. Incidentally, in that report, the sheriff stated that of the 119 supposed complainants, only seventy (70) were available at the time of service and that fifteen (15) of the 119 were already dead.

The names of the seventy who were available were listed as follows: "1. Valdevia, Pedro 24. Intes Rufino 2.

Saga, Fructoso 25. Artajo, Benjamin 3. Silva, Emilio 26.

Libongcogon, Dioscoro 4. Leyte, Victorino 27. Chiva Serafin 5.

Tijamo, Simplicio 28. Cavertet Felipe 6. Custodia Domingo 29.

Sison, Leonardo 7. Malagsic, Jesus 30. Sato, Catalino 8.

Alsado, Aniceto 31. Mahilum, Fortunato 9. Mabilog, Jose 32.

Terante, Esmeraldo 10. Pesanon Casiano 33. Patino, Hermogenes 11.

Cabahug, Francisco 34. Carvellida Artemio 12. Cajucson Serafin 35.

Macapas, Moises 13. Tardaguela, Jose 36. Aranda, Dominador 14.

Tardaguela, Ramon 37. Visitacion, Placido 15. Lumapay, Pamfilo 38.

Batigas, George 16. Japitan, Dioscoro 39. Pena Salustiano dela 17.

Artajo, Cirilo 40. Aluran, Jesus 18. Fortune, Lorenzo 41.

Macapas, Herminigildo 19. Malupay, Galo 42. Gempesala, Dominador 20.

Pena Sergio dela 43. Diamante, Felizardo 21. Castillo, Alfredo 44.

Centina, Eduardo 22. Pesanon Ricaredo 45. Jugadora, lose 23.

Lacares, Ruperto 46. Palma, Ignacio 47. Artajo, Roman 59.

Japitan, Sergio 48. Gracia, Dominador 60. Baynosa, Manuel 49.

Maglasang, Victor 61. Racho, Nemesis 50. Bia-is Mariano 62.

Pesanon Balbino 51. Dalogdog, Catalino 63. Gemino Domingo 52.

Malupay, Roman 64. Dogomeo, Hilarion 53. Benignos, Pacifica 65.

Liugan, Felomino 54. Bemancillo, Teofilo 66. Sato, Nicanor 55.

Aranda, Cesar 67. Alsado, Alejandro 56. Leyte, Juanita 68.

Artajo, Samuel 57. Diama, Igmedio 69. Bi-ay, Roberto 58.

Aluran, Simplicio 70. Amora, Andres (page 102, Record.) When the Court of Industrial Relations was abolished, the implementation of the portion of that decision referring to backwages was transferred to the National labor Relations Commission, herein public respondent. On January 23, 1975, Mr. Aurelio Cruz, formerly of the Examining Division of the defunct Court of Industrial Relations was directed by the Commission to proceed to the premises of petitioner Danao Development Corporation at Toboso, Negros Occidental to make the necessary computation of the backwages ordered to be paid to the complaints.

On March 14, 1975, Mr. Cruz submitted a partial report, the significant details of which are: x x x x x x x x x 3. Th0e amounts appearing opposite the individual names of the complaints represent the backwages for the period during milling season only. The backwages corresponding to the off- season for the period of the backwages are not included in We party report of examiner.

4. Also, not included in this party report of examiner are the earnings elsewhere, if there are any, of the individual complaints for the period from the date of up to March 20, 1972, and the money value of the rights, benefits and privileges enjoyed. 5.

The records of the respondent corporation show that the complainant Macario Macapas was not dismissal from the working on He continued rendering his services until he December 1, 1970. 6. In the operation of the sugar central the monthly employees work during milling session and also during the off- season.

However, there are daily workers who render their services during the milling and off-milling season. There are dialy workers who render their services during milling season but on rotation basis (i 5/15) during off- season. There are also daily workers who do not work during off-milling season.

Shown below are the crop years (Milling Season) of the respondent corporation for the years 1963 to 1973. CROP YEAR START OF MILLING END OF MILLING 1962-63 Dec. 5, 1962 June 24, 1963 1963-64 Jan.

8, 1964 Sept. 21, 1964 1964-65 Jan. 8, 1965 Aug.

10, 1965 1965-66 Dec. 8, 1965 June 2, 1966 1966-67 Dec. 7, 1966 June 24, 1967 1967-68 Jan 3, 1968 July 14, 1968 1968-69 Jan.

6, 1969 July 7, 1969 1969-70 Dec. 3, 1969 Sept. 7, 1970 1970-71 Dec.

2, 1970 Nov. 15, 1971 1971-72 Jan. 5, 1972 June 30, 1972 1972-73 Dec.

6, 1972 June 30, 1973 7. In the determination and computation of the back wages of the individual complainants for the period, the increases given to the employees and daily workers by the respondent sugar central were taken into consideration. Indicated hereunder are the increases given by respondent to all the employees and daily workers during the period covered by the backwages: DAILY RATES DATES MONTHLY RATES P4.00 1963 P - 4.30 Jan.

1964 250.00 5.50 Mar. 16, 1964 255.00 6.00 Apr. 21, 1965 272.50 6.20 Jan.

3, 1968 300.00 8.00 June 17, 1970 396.00 11.00 Sept. 24, 1972 - 12.10 Sept. 1, 1974 - 8.

There were complainants who died during the period covered by the backwages from the date of dismissal up to March 20, 1972. Attached herewith are copies of the death certificates of the dead complaints. Shown below are the names of the dead complaints: 1.

Alsado, Simplicio - Died Nov. 2, 1965 - 40 yrs. 2.

Marcella, Reynaldo - Feb. 22, 1966 - 29 yrs. 3.

Taleon, Jose - April 20, 1966 - 74 yrs. 4. Burong, Nicolas - April 29, 1966 - 53 yrs.

5. Seldura, Evangelista - Oct. 15, 1966 - 48 yrs.

6. Villar, Andres - March 29, 1967 - 67 yrs. 7.

Dogomeo, Victorians - Sept. 27, 1969 - 61 yrs. 8.

Sison, Manuel - Jan. 7, 1970 - 68 yrs. 9.

Panla-an Fulgencio - Aug. 10, 1970 - 61 yrs. 10.

Claraga, Rogelio - Nov. 22, 1970 - 30 yrs. 11.

Perfecto, Felimon - Feb. 15, 1971 - 69 yrs. 12.

Bernacer, Narciso - March 12, 1971 - 51 yrs. 13. Villagorda, Edilberto - Sept.

4, 1971 14. Villagorda, Albno - Jan. 28, 1973 15.

Panla-an Cayetano - May 16, 1973 - 74 yrs. 9. The management of the respondent sugar central furnished the undersigned a partial list of names of the complaints who reached the age of sixty (60) during the Period covered by the backwages.

According to them, the employees is retired from the service upon reaching the age Of sixty (60). Shown below are the names of the complaints who reach the age of 60. This matter was not taken into consideration in the computation and is not included in this partial report of examiner.

NAMES DATE OF BIRTH 1. Alsado, Aniceto July 7, 1907 2. Alsado, Alejandro May 14, 1907 3.

Cabahug, Francisco April 2, 1912 4. Dogomeo, Hilario April 15, 1913 5. Gempesala, Dominador Sept.

18, 1912 6. Jugadora, Jon March 19, 1903 7. Liugan, Filomeno Nov.

11, 1906 8. Leyte, Juanita Feb.14, 1912 9. Maglasang, Victor April 15, 1912 10.

Pesanon Casiano Aug. 10, 1905 11. Pena Salustiano de la June 5, 1904 12.

Sato, Nicanor Jan.17, 1901 13. Tardaguela, Ramon March 5, 1906 14. Tejano.

Zosimo June 5, 1905 15. Visitacion, Placido Oct. 5, 1905 10.

In the determination and computation of the money value of the backwages of the individual complainants for the period covered, the procedure used are as follows: a. The rates and its increases were determined from the records of respondent; b.

The number of days of the milling season corresponding to the given rate was determined from the calendar for years 1963-1972; c. To arrive at the amount of the backwages, the rates is multiplied by the number of days during the milling season for the period. Shown below is an illustration of the determination and computation of the money value of the backwages: 1.

Agravante, Felizardo