Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Labor Standards 4
Labor Standards 4
2. WAGES x x x
1. Generally, employees have a vested right over existing benefits voluntarily granted to
them by their employer. Thus, any benefit and supplement being enjoyed by the employees
cannot be reduced, diminished, discontinued or eliminated by the employer. The principle of
non-diminution of benefits is actually founded on the Constitutional mandate to protect the
rights of workers, to promote their welfare, and to afford them full protection. In turn, said
mandate is the basis of Article 4 of the Labor Code which states that "all doubts in the
implementation and interpretation of this Code, including its implementing rules and
regulations, shall be rendered in favor of labor."1
2. There is diminution of benefits when the following requisites are present: (1) the grant
or benefit is founded on a policy or has ripened into a practice over a long period of time; (2)
the practice is consistent and deliberate; (3) the practice is not due to error in the
construction or application of a doubtful or difficult question of law; and (4) the diminution or
discontinuance is done unilaterally by the employer. To be considered as a regular company
practice, the employee must prove by substantial evidence that the giving of the benefit is done
over a long period of time, and that it has been made consistently and deliberately.
Jurisprudence has not laid down any hard-and-fast rule as to the length of time that company
practice should have been exercised in order to constitute voluntary employer practice. The
common denominator in previously decided cases appears to be the regularity and
deliberateness of the grant of benefits over a significant period of time. It requires an
indubitable showing that the employer agreed to continue giving the benefit knowing fully well
that the employees are not covered by any provision of the law or agreement requiring payment
thereof.22 In sum, the benefit must be characterized by regularity, voluntary and deliberate
intent of the employer to grant the benefit over a considerable period of time. 2
3. Coca-Cola’s isolated act of including the Sales Management Incentives (SMI) in the
retirement package of an employee could hardly be classified as a company practice that may
be considered an enforceable obligation. The principle against diminution of benefits is
applicable only if the grant or benefit is founded on an express policy or has ripened into a
practice over a long period of time which is consistent and deliberate; it presupposes that a
company practice, policy and tradition favorable to the employees has been clearly established;
and that the payments made by the company pursuant to it have ripened into benefits enjoyed
by them. Certainly, a practice or custom is, as a general rule, not a source of a legally
demandable or enforceable right. Company practice, just like any other fact, habits, customs,
usage or patterns of conduct, must be proven by the offering party who must allege and
establish specific, repetitive conduct that might constitute evidence of habit or company
practice.3
1
Vergara Jr. vs. Coca-Cola Bottlers Philippines, Inc. (G.R. No. 176985, 1 April 2013).
2
Ibid.
3
Ibid.
4
Home Credit Mutual building and Loan Association and/or Alcantara vs. Prudente (G.R. No. 200010, 27 August
2020).
1
5. he Non-Diminution Rule found in Article 100 of the Labor Code explicitly prohibits
employers from eliminating or reducing the benefits received by their employees. This rule,
however, applies only if the benefit is based on an express policy, a written contract, or has
ripened into a practice. To be considered a practice, it must be consistently and deliberately
made by the employer over a long period of time. An exception to the rule is when "the practice
is due to error in the construction or application of a doubtful or difficult question of
law." The error, however, must be corrected immediately after its discovery; otherwise, the rule
on Non-Diminution of Benefits would still apply.5
C) PAYMENT OF WAGES
5
Wesleyan University Philippines vs. Wesleyan University Faculty and Staff Association (G.R. No. No. 181806, 12
March 2014).
2
(e) No employer shall in any manner, force, compel or oblige his
employees directly or indirectly to make use of any store or services
operated by such employer or any other person.
(f) No employer shall make any deduction from the wages of his
employees, except under authority of law, or require his employees to
make deposits form which deduction shall be made, for the
reimbursement of loss or damage to tools, materials, or equipment
supplied by the employer, unless he shall have first obtained authorization
from the Secretary. Such authorization to make deductions from wages or
require deposits for reimbursement for the purpose stated shall be based
upon a finding that the practice of making deductions or requiring
deposits is a recognized one in the trade or occupation concerned; or that
it is necessary or desirable in such trade or occupation.
(g) It shall be unlawful for any person, including but not restricted to,
any employer, supervisor, foreman or other representative of an employer,
employment agent, labor contractor, recruiter, or any officer or
representative of a labor organization, or any officer of the National
Government or any provincial, city or municipal government, or any
superintendent, supervisor, foreman, time-keeper, or person in charge in
the service of such government, to make any deductions or withhold any
amount from the wages of an employee or induce any employee to give up
any part of the wages to which he is entitled by force, intimidation, threat
or procuring dismissal or in any other manner whatsoever.
(h) Wages shall be paid not less than once every two weeks or twice a
month at intervals not exceeding sixteen days. In the case of employees
hired to perform a task, the completion of which requires more than a
fortnight, and in respect of whom intervals for the payment of wages are
not otherwise fixed by collective agreement or arbitration award, it shall
be the duty of the employer:
3
(1) Whenever an employer shall contract with another
person for the performance of the employer's work, then it
shall be the duty of such employer to provide in such contract
that the employees of the contractor and the latter's
subcontractor shall be paid according to the provisions of this
Act and in the event that such contractor or subcontractor
shall fail to pay wages to his employee as specified in this Act,
such employer shall become civilly liable to the employees of
the contractor or subcontractor to the extent that such work
is performed under such contract, in the same manner as if
said employees were directly employed by such employer.
(l) This section shall apply to all employees to whom a minimum wage
applies under this Act, including those who are paid wages higher than the
applicable minimum.
Section 3. x x x. All workers paid by result, including those who are paid
on piecework, takay, pakyaw or task basis, shall receive not less than the
prescribed wage rates per eight (8) hours work a day, or a proportion
thereof for working less than eight (8) hours. (RA 6727).
4
corporation, trust or firm, partnership, association or any other entity,
the penalty of imprisonment shall be imposed upon the entity's
responsible officers, including, but not limited to, the president, vice
president, chief executive officer, general manager, managing director or
partner. (RA 6727, as amended by RA 8188).
Under Section 2 (m) of DOLE Department Order No. 10, Series of 1998, 30 the Notice of
Inspection Result "shall specify the violations discovered, if any, together with the officer's
recommendation and computation of the unpaid benefits due each worker with an advice that
the employer shall be liable for double indemnity in case of refusal or failure to correct the
violation within five calendar days from receipt of notice." A careful review of the Notice of
Inspection Result dated 29 May 2002, issued herein by the DOLE-NCR to Dusit Hotel, reveals
that the said Notice did not contain such an advice. Although the Notice directed Dusit Hotel
to correct its noted violations within five days from receipt thereof, it was not sufficiently
apprised that failure to do so within the given period would already result in its liability for
double indemnity. The lack of advice deprived Dusit Hotel of the opportunity to decide and act
accordingly within the five-day period, as to avoid the penalty of double indemnity. Hence it
can not be said refused or failed to pay any of the prescribed increases or adjustments in the
wage rate5 to come within the purview of Section 12 of R.A. No. 6727, as amended by RA No.
8188. As such, there is no basis to hold the petitioners for double indemnity. 6
E) WAGE DISTORTION
(1) CONCEPT
1. The statutory definition of wage distortion is found in Article 124 of the Labor Code, as
amended by Republic Act No. 6727 (Wage Rationalization Act), which reads:
A disparity in wages between employees holding similar positions but in different regions does
not constitute wage distortion as contemplated by law. Wage distortion involves a parity in the
salary rates of different pay classes which, as a result, eliminates the distinction between the
different ranks in the same region.7
6
Marby Food Ventures Corporationn, et al. vs. De la Cruz, et al. (G.R. No. 244629, 28 July 2020).
7
Prubankers Association vs. Prudential Bank & Trust Company (G.R. No. 131247, 25 January 1999).
5
“Where the application of any prescribed wage increase by virtue of a law or
Wage Order issued by any Regional Board results in distortions of the wage
structure within an establishment, the employer and the union shall negotiate
to correct the distortions. Any dispute arising from the wage distortions shall be
resolved through the grievance procedure under their collective bargaining
agreement and, if it remains unresolved, through voluntary arbitration.”
Wage distortion is a factual and economic condition that may be brought about by different
causes. However, the mere factual existence of wage distortion does not, however, ipso
facto result to an obligation to rectify it, absent a law or other source of obligation which
requires its rectification. If a wage distortion is not the result of wage increase by virtue of law
or wage order issued by a Regional Board, then there is no legal obligation to correct it. 8
4. The Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Commission issued in 1991 the
following formula to correct wage distortions:
This formula suggested then by Commissioner Bonto-Perez, which has also been the standard
considered by the regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Commission for the correction of
pay scale structures in cases of wage distortion, appears to just and equitable. 9
B. MINIMUM WAGE
2. There are two methods of adjusting the minimum wage. In Employers Confederation of
the Phils. v. National Wages and Productivity Commission (201 SCRA 759, 24 September 1991),
these were identified as the "floor wage" and the "salary-ceiling" methods. The "floor wage"
method involves the fixing of a determinate amount to be added to the prevailing statutory
minimum wage rates. On the other hand, in the "salary-ceiling" method, the wage adjustment
was to be applied to employees receiving a certain denominated salary ceiling. In other words,
workers already being paid more than the existing minimum wage (up to a certain amount
stated in the Wage Order) are also to be given a wage increase.10
3. To ensure the payment of fair and reasonable wage rates, Article 101of the Labor Code
provides that "the Secretary of Labor shall regulate the payment of wages by results,
including pakyao, piecework and other non-time work." The same statutory provision also
states that the wage rates should be based, preferably, on time and motion studies, or those
arrived at in consultation with representatives of workers' and employers' organizations. It is
then the responsibility of workers employing piece-rate workers to inquire from the Secretary of
Labor about their prescribed specific wage rates. If there are no such prescribed rates, they
8
Bankard Employees Union-Workers Alliance Trade Unions vs. NLRC and Bankard, Inc. (G.R. No. 140689, 17
February 2004).
9
Metropolitan Bank & Trust Company Employees Union-ALU-TUCP and Balinag vs. NLRC and Metrobank (G.R. No.
102636, 10 September 1993).
10
Norkis Free and Independent Workers Union vs. Norkis Trading Company, Inc. (G.R. No. 157098, 30 June 2005).
6
should, after consultation with their workers, submit for the Secretary’s approval time and
motion studies as basis for the wage rates of the employees. In the absence of such prescribed
wage rates for piece-rate workers, the ordinary minimum wage rates prescribed by the RTWPBs
should apply.11
4. Section 4(c) of RA 6727 provides for exemption from the coverage of minimum wage
“retail/service establishments regularly employing not more than ten (10) workers.” But they
are to apply for such exemption with the appropriate Regional Board. Otherwise, they are not
exempted.12
G) HOLIDAY PAY
PD 851:
"Thirteenth-moth pay" shall mean one twelfth (1/12) of the basic salary of
an employee within a calendar year;
The 13th-month pay mandated by Presidential Decree (P.D.) No. 851 represents an additional
income based on wage but not part of the wage. It is equivalent to one-twelfth (1/12) of the
total basic salary earned by an employee within a calendar year. All rank-and-file employees,
regardless of their designation or employment status and irrespective of the method by which
their wages are paid, are entitled to this benefit, provided that they have worked for at least one
month during the calendar year. If the employee worked for only a portion of the year, the
13th-month pay is computed pro rata.13
The term "basic salary" of an employee for the purpose of computing the 13th-month pay was
interpreted to include all remuneration or earnings paid by the employer for services rendered,
but does not include allowances and monetary benefits which are not integrated as part of the
regular or basic salary, such as the cash equivalent of unused vacation and sick leave credits,
overtime, premium, night differential and holiday pay, and cost-of-living allowances. However,
these salary-related benefits should be included as part of the basic salary in the computation
of the 13th-month pay if, by individual or collective agreement, company practice or policy, the
same are treated as part of the basic salary of the employees.14
The practice of petitioner in giving 13th-month pay based on the employees’ gross annual
earnings which included the basic monthly salary, premium pay for work on rest days and
special holidays, night shift differential pay and holiday pay continued for almost thirty (30)
years and has ripened into a company policy or practice which cannot be unilaterally
withdrawn. Article 100 of the Labor Code, otherwise known as the Non-Diminution Rule,
mandates that benefits given to employees cannot be taken back or reduced unilaterally by the
employer because the benefit has become part of the employment contract, written or
unwritten. The rule against diminution of benefits applies if it is shown that the grant of the
benefit is based on an express policy or has ripened into a practice over a long period of time
and that the practice is consistent and deliberate. Nevertheless, the rule will not apply if the
11
Pulp and Paper, Inc. vs. NLRC and Antonio (G.R. No. 116593, 24 September 1997).
12
C. Planas Commercial and Cohu vs. NLRC, et al. (G.R. No. 144619, 11 November 2005).
13
Central Azucarera de Tarlac vs. Centra Azucarera de Tarlac Labor Union-NLU (G.R. No. 188949, 26 July 2010).
14
Ibid.
7
practice is due to error in the construction or application of a doubtful or difficult question of
law. But even in cases of error, it should be shown that the correction is done soon after
discovery of the error.15
I. RETIREMENT PAY
A covered employee who retires pursuant to RA 7641 shall be entitled to retirement pay
equivalent to at least one-half (1/12) month salary for every year of service, a fraction of at least
six (6) months being considered as one whole year.
The retirement pay is equal to half-month’s pay per year of service. But "half-month’s pay" is
"expanded" because it means not just the salary for 15 days but also one-twelfth of the 13th-
month pay and the cash value of five-day service incentive leave. THIS IS THE MINIMUM. The
retirement pay package can be improved upon by voluntary company policy, or particular
agreement with the employee, or through a collective bargaining agreement." Jurisprudence
has established 22.5 days pay per year of service is the correct formula in arriving at the
complete retirement pay.16
In the case of an employee who is paid on commission basis, we total his commissions for the
last 12 months, and we divide by 12 to get at his monhy earning. Then we divide said montly
earning by 26 days, While complainant endeavored to substantiate his claim that he earned
average daily commission of ₱700.00, however, the documents he presented are not complete,
simply representative copies, therefore unreliable. On the other haNd, while respondents
question complainant’s use of ₱700.00 (daily income) as basis in determining the latter’s
correct retirement pay, the factor commonly used in determining the regular working days in a
month, to arrive at his daily income. Then multiply his daily by 22.5 days to arrive at his
retirement pay.17
3. LEAVES
B) MATERNITY LEAVE
15
Ibid.
16
Serrano vs. Severino Santos Transit and/or Santos (G.R. No. 187698, 9 August 2010).
17
Ibid.
8
maternity leave of sixty (60) days with full pay shall be granted for
miscarriage or emergency termination of pregnancy.
(a) A female Social Security System (SSS) member who has paid at least
three (3) monthly contributions in the twelve (12)-month period
immediately preceding the semester of her childbirth, miscarriage, or
emergency termination of pregnancy shall be paid her daily maternity
benefit which shall be computed based on her average monthly salary
credit for one hundred five (105) days, regardless of whether she gave birth
via caesarian section or natural delivery, subject to the following
conditions:
(1) That the female worker shall have notified her employer of
her pregnancy and the probable date of her childbirth, which notice
shall be transmitted to the SSS in accordance with the rules and
regulations it may provide;
In case the employee qualifies as a solo parent under Republic Act No. 8972, or
the "Solo Parents’ Welfare Act", the employee shall be paid an additional
maternity benefit of fifteen (15) days.
(b) An additional maternity leave of thirty (30) days, without pay, can be
availed of, at the option of the female worker: Provided, That the employer shall
be given due notice, in writing, at least forty-five (45) days before the end of her
maternity leave: Provided, further, That no prior notice shall be necessary in the
event of a medical emergency but subsequent notice shall be given to the head of
the agency.
(c) Workers availing of the maternity leave period and benefits must receive
their full pay. Employers from the private sector shall be responsible for payment
of the salary differential between the actual cash benefits received from the SSS
by the covered female workers and their average weekly or regular wages, for the
entire duration of the maternity leave, with the following exceptions, subject to
the guidelines to be issued by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE):
9
total assets are not more than Three million pesos (₱3,000,000.00);
and
(4) Those who are already providing similar or more than the
benefits herein provided.
Section 7. Maternity Leave for Women Regardless of Civil Status.— All female
workers in the government and female members of the SSS, regardless of their
civil status, shall be granted maternity leave, with full pay, upon compliance with
the preceding section.
Section 10. Maternity Leave Benefits for Women in the Informal Economy and
Voluntary Contributors to the SSS.— Maternity benefits shall cover all married
and unmarried women, including female workers in the informal economy.
Female workers in the informal economy are entitled to maternity leave benefits
if they have remitted to the SSS at least three (3) monthly contributions in
the .twelve (12)-month period immediately preceding the semester of her
childbirth, miscarriage, or emergency termination of pregnancy.
Section 11. Maternity Benefits for Female Workers Who are Non-Members of the
SSS.— Female workers who are neither voluntary nor regular members of the SSS
shall be governed by the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth)
Circular No. 022-2014 or the "Social Health Insurance Coverage and Benefits for
Women About to Give Birth".
(a) "Solo parent" - any individual who falls under any of the following
categories:
11
(6) Parent left solo or alone with the responsibility of
parenthood due to declaration of nullity or annulment of
marriage as decreed by a court or by a church as long as
he/she is entrusted with the custody of the children;
12
(d) Placing the woman or her child in fear of imminent
physical harm;
13
(5) Engaging in any form of harassment or
violence;
SECTION 43. Entitled to Leave. – Victims under this Act shall be entitled
to take a paid leave of absence up to ten (10) days in addition to other
paid leaves under the Labor Code and Civil Service Rules and Regulations,
extendible when the necessity arises as specified in the protection order.
F) COMPASSIONATE LEAVES
A) WOMEN
(1) DISCRIMINATION
LABOR CODE:
In Zialcita, et al. vs. Philippine Air Lines, a policy of Philippine Air Lines requiring that
prospective flight attendants must be single and that they will be automatically separated from
14
the service once they marry was declared void, it being violative of the clear mandate in Article
136 of the Labor Code with regard to discrimination against married women.
B) MINORS
Sec. 2. Employment of Children - Children below fifteen (15) years of age shall not
be employed except:
For purposes of this Article, the term "child" shall apply to all
persons under eighteen (18) years of age."
(1) A child below fifteen (15) years of age may be allowed to work
for not more than twenty (20) hours a week: Provided, That the work
shall not be more than four (4) hours at any given day;
(2) A child fifteen (15) years of age but below eighteen (18) shall
not be allowed to work for more than eight (8) hours a day, and in no
case beyond forty (40) hours a week;
15
(3) No child below fifteen (15) years of age shall be allowed to
work between eight o'clock in the evening and six o'clock in the
morning of the following day and no child fifteen (15) years of age
but below eighteen (18) shall be allowed to work between ten o'clock
in the evening and six o'clock in the morning of the following day."
16
i) Involves the manufacture or handling of
explosives and other pyrotechnic products.
C) KASAMBAHAYS
The term shall not include children who are under foster family
arrangement, and are provided access to education and given an allowance
incidental to education, i.e.
Section 6. Board, Lodging and Medical Attendance. – The employer shall
provide for the basic necessities of the domestic worker to include at least
three (3) adequate meals a day and humane sleeping arrangements that
ensure safety.
The employer shall provide appropriate rest and assistance to the domestic
worker in case of illnesses and injuries sustained during service without
loss of benefits.
Section 7. Guarantee of Privacy. – Respect for the privacy of the domestic
worker shall be guaranteed at all times and shall extend to all forms of
communication and personal effects. This guarantee equally recognizes
that the domestic worker is obliged to render satisfactory service at all
times.
17
Section 9. Right to Education and Training. – The employer shall afford
the domestic worker the opportunity to finish basic education and may
allow access to alternative learning systems and, as far as practicable,
higher education or technical and vocational training. The employer shall
adjust the work schedule of the domestic worker to allow such access to
education or training without hampering the services required by the
employer.
PRE-EMPLOYMENT
(c) Compensation;
18
(a) Medical certificate or a health certificate issued by a
local government health officer;
However, Section 12(a), (b), (c) and (d) shall be standard requirements when
the employment of the domestic worker is facilitated through the PEA.
Section 14. Deposits for Loss or Damage. – It shall be unlawful for the
employer or any other person to require a domestic worker to make
deposits from which deductions shall be made for the reimbursement of
loss or damage to tools, materials, furniture and equipment in the
household.
Section 15. Prohibition on Debt Bondage. – It shall be unlawful for the
employer or any person acting on behalf of the employer to place the
domestic worker under debt bondage.
Any employer who has been sentenced by a court of law of any offense
against a working child under this Act shall be meted out with a penalty
one degree higher and shall be prohibited from hiring a working child.
Section 19. Health and Safety. – The employer shall safeguard the health
and safety of the domestic worker in accordance with laws, rules and
regulations, with due consideration of the peculiar nature of domestic
work.
Section 20. Daily Rest Period. – The domestic worker shall be entitled to
an aggregate daily rest period of eight (8) hours per day.
19
provision shall deprive the domestic worker and the employer from
agreeing to the following:
Section 23. Extent of Duty. – The domestic worker and the employer may
mutually agree for the former to temporarily perform a task that is outside
the latter’s household for the benefit of another household. However, any
liability that will be incurred by the domestic worker on account of such
arrangement shall be borne by the original employer. In addition, such
work performed outside the household shall entitle the domestic worker to
an additional payment of not less than the existing minimum wage rate of a
domestic worker. It shall be unlawful for the original employer to charge
any amount from the said household where the service of the domestic
worker was temporarily performed.
POST EMPLOYMENT
The domestic worker and the employer may mutually agree upon written
notice to pre-terminate the contract of employment to end the
employment relationship.
20
(b) Inhuman treatment including physical abuse of the
domestic worker by the employer or any member of the
household;
Section 2 of the IRR of said law specifically excludes family drivers as a “kasambahay”.
D) HOMEWORKERS
LABOR CODE:
21
Article 155. Distribution of homework. For purposes of this Chapter, the
"employer" of homeworkers includes any person, natural or artificial, who
for his account or benefit or on behalf of any person residing outside the
country, directly or indirectly, or through any employee, agent, contractor,
sub-contractor or any other person:
Section 3. Payment for work. (a) Immediately upon receipt of the finished
goods or articles, the employer shall pay the homeworker or the contractor
or sub-contractor, as the case may be, for the work performed; Provided,
However, that where payment is made to a contractor or sub-contractor,
the homeworker shall be paid within the week after the contractor or sub-
contractor has collected the goods or articles from the homeworkers.
(b) The Secretary of Labor and Employment shall from time to time
establish the standard minimum piece or output rate in appropriate orders
for the particular work or processing to be performed by the homeworkers.
Section 5. Conditions for payment of work. (a) The employer may require
the homeworker to re-do work which has been improperly executed
without having to pay the stipulated rate more than once.
The employer shall also ensure that measures are taken to prevent the
telecommuting employee from being isolated from the rest of the working
community in the company by giving the telecommuting employee the
opportunity to meet with colleagues on a regular basis, and opportunity to
meet with colleagues on a regular basis, and allowing access to company
information.
23
Section 6. Data Protection. - The employer shall be responsible for taking
the appropriate measures to ensure the protection of data used and
processed by the telecommuting employee for professional purposes. The
employer shall inform the telecommuting employee of all relevant laws, and
company rules concerning sata protection. The telecommuting employee
shall ensure that confidential and proprietary information are protected at
all times.
For this purpose, the provision s of the Data Privacy Act of 2012 shall have
suppletory effect.
E) NIGHT WORKERS
Chapter V
Employment of Night Workers
24
(c) If they experience health problems during such, an
assignment which are not caused by factors other than the
performance of night work.
With the exception of a finding of unfitness for night work, the findings
of such assessments shall not be transmitted to others without the
workers' consent and shall not be used to their detriment."
25
Pregnant women and nursing mothers may be allowed to work .at night
only if a competent physician, other than the company physician, shall
certify their fitness to render night work, and specify, in the case of
pregnant employees, the period of the pregnancy that they can safely
work.
The provisions of this article shall not leave the effect of reducing the
protection and benefits connected with maternity leave under existing
laws.
APPRENTICES
26
agreements providing for wage rates below the legal minimum wage,
which in no case shall start below 75 percent of the applicable minimum
wage, may be entered into only in accordance with apprenticeship
programs duly approved by the Secretary of Labor and Employment. The
Department shall develop standard model programs of apprenticeship.
(As amended by Section 1, Executive Order No. 111, December 24, 1986)
RA 7796, which created the TESDA, has transferred the authority over apprenticeship
programs from the Bureau of Local Employment of the DOLE to the TESDA. RA 7796
emphasizes TESDA’s approval of the apprenticeship program as a pre-requisite for the hiring of
apprentices. Such intent is clear under Section 4 of RA 7796:
On 15 July 1997, Century Canning Corporation hired Palad as "fish cleaner." Palad signed on
17 July 1997 an apprenticeship agreement 3 with petitioner. On 25 July 1997, Century
submitted its apprenticeship program for approval to the Technical Education and Skills
Development Authority (TESDA). On 26 September 1997, the TESDA approved petitioner’s
apprenticeship program. RULING: Apprenticeship agreements entered into by the employer
and apprentice shall be entered only in accordance with the apprenticeship program duly
approved by the Minister of Labor and Employment. Prior approval by the Department of
Labor and Employment of the proposed apprenticeship program is, therefore, a condition sine
qua non before an apprenticeship agreement can be validly entered into. The act of filing the
proposed apprenticeship program with the Department of Labor and Employment is a
preliminary step towards its final approval and does not instantaneously give rise to an
employer-apprentice relationship. The requisite TESDA approval of the apprenticeship
program prior to the hiring of apprentices was further emphasized by the DOLE with the
issuance of Department Order No. 68-04 on 18 August 2004. Department Order No. 68-04,
which provides the guidelines in the implementation of the Apprenticeship and Employment
Program of the government, specifically states that no enterprise shall be allowed to hire
apprentices unless its apprenticeship program is registered and approved by TESDA.
Therefore, the employee became a regular employee when he was hired.18
The fact that the individuals were already rendering service to the company when they were
made to undergo apprenticeship renders the apprenticeship agreements irrelevant as far as
they are concerned. These individuals occupied positions such as machine operator, scaleman
and extruder operator - tasks that are usually necessary and desirable in the company’s usual
business or trade as manufacturer of plastic building materials. These tasks and their nature
characterized them as regular employees under Article 280 of the Labor Code. 19
Upon graduation an apprentice may not be put under probationary employment in the
company in which he trained. In another company, however, the probationary period for him
18
Century Canning Corporation vs. CA and Palad (G.R. No. 152894, 17 August 2007).
19
Atlanta Industries, Inc. and/or Chan vs. Sebolino, et al. (G.R. No. 187320, 26 January 2011).
27
would be six (6) months. The reason is to allow the employer to test his working habits and
other personal traits with respect to his fitness for regularization in the company. 20
LEARNERS
The duration of the learnership period, which shall not exceed three (3)
months;
The wages or salary rates of the learners which shall begin at not less
than seventy-five percent (75%) of the applicable minimum wage; and
20
Aguilar and UST vs. Office of the President and Reyes (G.R. No. L-57822, 26 April 1989).
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G) PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
(1) DISCRIMINATION
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SECTION 32. Discrimination on Employment: No entity, whether public or
private, shall discriminate against a qualified disabled person by reason of
disability in regard to job application procedures, the hiring, promotion, or
discharge of employees, employee compensation, job training, and other
terms, conditions, and privileges of employment.
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separate forms and in separate medical files and is treated as
a confidential medical record, Provided, however, That:
31
SECTION 8. Incentives for Employer :
(b). Private entities that employ disabled persons who meet the required
skills or qualifications, either as regular employee, apprentice or learner,
shall be entitled to an additional deduction, from their gross income,
equivalent to twenty-five percent (25%) of the total amount paid as salaries
and wages to disabled persons: Provided, however, That such entities
present proof as certified by the Department of Labor and Employment
that disabled person are under their employ. Provided, further, That the
disabled employee is accredited with the Department of Labor and
Employment and the Department of Health as to his disability, skills and
qualifications.
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(3) When the sexual favor is made a condition to the giving
of a passing grade, or the granting of honors and scholarships,
or the payment of a stipend, allowance or other benefits,
privileges, or considerations; or
Any person who directs or induces another to commit any act of sexual
harassment as herein defined, or who cooperates in the commission thereof
by another without which it would not have been committed, shall also be
held liable under this Act.
The said rules and regulations issued pursuant to this subsection (a) shall
include, among others, guidelines on proper decorum in the workplace and
educational or training institutions.
SEC. 6. Independent Action for Damages. – Nothing in this Act shall
preclude the victim of work, education or training-related sexual
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harassment from instituting a separate and independent action for
damages and other affirmative relief.
SEC 7. Penalties. – Any person who violates the provisions of this Act
shall, upon conviction, be penalized by imprisonment of not less than one
(1) month nor more than six (6) months, or a fine of not less than Ten
thousand pesos (P 10,000) nor more than Twenty thousand pesos (P
20,000), or both such fine and imprisonment at the discretion of the court.
Any action arising from the violation of the provisions of this Act shall
prescribe in three (3) years.
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(1) Adequately represent the management, the employees from
the supervisory rank, the rank-and-file employees, and the
union, if any;
(2) Designate a woman as its head and not less than half of its
members should be women;
(4) Investigate and decide on the complaints within ten (10) days
or less upon receipt thereof;
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