Source: http://www.philippinecpa.com/2011/06/labor-law-part-2.html
Timestamp: 2017-12-14 06:05:06
Document Index: 613296857

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 2', 'ART. 212', 'ART. 213', 'ART. 214', 'ART. 215', 'ART. 216', 'ART. 219', 'ART. 220', 'ART. 221', 'ART. 222', 'ART. 224', 'ART. 225', 'ART. 226', 'ART. 227', 'ART. 228', 'ART. 229', 'ART. 230', 'ART. 231', 'ART. 232', 'ART. 233', 'ART. 234', 'ART. 235', 'ART. 236', 'ART. 237', 'ART. 238', 'ART. 238', 'ART. 239', 'ART. 240', 'ART. 241', 'ART. 242', 'ART. 243', 'ART. 244', 'ART. 245', 'ART. 246', 'ART. 247', 'ART. 248', 'ART. 249', 'ART. 250', 'ART. 251', 'ART. 252', 'ART. 253', 'ART. 253', 'ART. 254', 'ART. 255', 'ART. 256', 'ART. 257', 'ART. 258', 'ART. 259', 'ART. 260', 'ART. 261', 'ART. 262', 'ART. 262', 'ART. 262', 'ART. 263', 'ART. 264', 'ART. 265', 'ART. 266', 'ART. 267', 'ART. 268', 'ART. 269', 'ART. 270', 'ART. 271', 'ART. 272', 'ART. 273', 'ART. 274', 'ART. 275', 'ART. 276', 'ART. 277', 'ART. 279', 'ART. 280', 'ART. 282', 'ART. 283', 'ART. 284', 'ART. 285', 'ART. 286', 'ART. 288', 'ART. 290', 'ART. 291', 'ART. 294', 'ART. 295', 'ART. 296', 'ART. 298', 'ART. 299', 'ART. 300']

BIR Tax Information, Business Solutions and Professional System: Labor Law (Part 2)
ART. 212. Definitions. - (a) “Commission” means the National Labor Relations Commission or any of its divisions, as the case may be, as provided under this Code.
(j) “Bargaining representative” means a legitimate labor organization or any officer or agent of such organization whether or not employed by the employer.
(k) “Unfair labor practice” means any unfair labor practice as expressly defined by this Code.
(m) “Managerial employee” is one who is vested with powers or prerogatives to lay down and execute management policies and/or to hire, transfer, suspend, lay-off, recall, discharge, assign or discipline employees. Supervisory employees are those who, in the interest of the employer, effectively recommend such managerial actions if the exercise of such authority is not merely routinary or clerical in nature but requires the use of independent judgment. All employees not falling within any of the above definitions are considered rank-and-file employees for purposes of this Book.
(n) “Voluntary Arbitrator” means any person accredited by the Board as such, or any person named or designated in the Collective Bargaining Agreement by the parties to act as their Voluntary Arbitrator, or one chosen, with or without the assistance of the National Conciliation and Mediation Board, pursuant to a selection procedure agreed upon in the collective bargaining agreement, or any official that may be authorized by the Secretary of Labor and Employment to act as voluntary arbitrator upon the written request and agreement of the parties to a labor dispute.
(p) “Lockout” means the temporary refusal of an employer to furnish work as a result of an industrial or labor dispute.
(q) “Internal union dispute” includes all disputes or grievances arising from any violation of or disagreement over any provision of the constitution and by-laws of a union, including any violation of the rights and conditions of union membership provided for in this Code.
(r) “Strike breaker” means any person who obstructs, impedes, or interferes with by force, violence, coercion, threats or intimidation any peaceful picketing by employees during any labor controversy affecting wages, hours or conditions of work or in the exercise of the right of self-organization or collective bargaining.
(s) “Strike area” means the establishment, warehouses, depots, plants or offices, including the sites or premises used as run-away shops, of the employer struck against, as well as the immediate vicinity actually used by picketing strikers in moving to and fro before all points of entrance to and exit from said establishment. (As amended by RA 6715)
ART. 213. National Labor Relations Commission. - There shall be a National Labor Relations Commission which shall be attached to the Department of Labor and Employment for program and policy coordination only, composed of a Chairman and fourteen (14) members.
The Commission may sit en banc or in five (5) divisions, each composed of three (3) members. The Commission shall sit en banc only for purposes of promulgating rules and regulations governing the hearing and disposition of cases before any of its divisions and regional branches and formulating policies affecting its administration and operations. The Commission shall exercise its adjudicatory and all other powers, functions, and duties through its divisions. Of the five (5) divisions, the first and second divisions shall handle cases coming from the National Capital Region and the third, fourth and fifth divisions, cases from other parts of Luzon, from the Visayas and Mindanao, respectively. The divisions of the Commission shall have exclusive appellate jurisdiction over cases within their respective territorial jurisdiction.
The Chairman,ded by the Executive Clerk of the Commission, shall have administrative supervision over the Commission and its regional branches and all its personnel, including the Executive Labor Arbiters and Labor Arbiters.
ART. 214. Headquarters, branches and provincial extension units. - The Commission and its First, Second, and Third divisions shall have their main offices in Metropolitan Manila, and the fourth and fifth divisions in the cities of Cebu and Cagayan de Oro, respectively. The Commission shall establish as many regional branches as there are regional offices of the Department of Labor and Employment, sub-regional branches or provincial extension units. There shall be as many labor Arbiters as may be necessary for the effective and efficient operation of the Commission. Each regional branch shall be headed by an Executive Labor Arbiter. (As amended by RA 6715)
ART. 215. Appointment and qualifications. - The Chairman and other Commissioners shall be members of the Philippine Bar and must have been engaged in the practice of law in the Philippines for at least fifteen (15) years, with at least five (5) years experience or exposure in the field of labor-management relations, and shall preferably be residents of the region where they are to hold office. The Executive Labor Arbiters and Labor Arbiters shall likewise be members of the Philippine Bar and must have been engaged in the practice of law in the Philippines for at least seven (7) years, with at least three (3) years experience or exposure in the field of labor-management relations: Provided, however, that incumbent Executive Labor Arbiters and Labor Arbiters who have been engaged in the practice of law for at least five (5) years may be considered as already qualified for purposes of reappointment as such under this Act.
ART. 216. Salaries, benefits and other emoluments. - The Chairman and members of the Commission shall receive an annual salary at least equivalent to, and be entitled to the same allowances and benefits as, those of the Presiding Justice and Associate Justices of the Court of Appeals, respectively. The Executive Labor Arbiters shall receive an annual salary at least equivalent to that of an Assistance Regional Director of the Department of Labor and Employment and shall be entitled to the same allowances and benefits as that of a Regional Director of said Department. The Labor Arbiters shall receive an annual salary at least equivalent to, and be entitled to the same allowances and benefits as, that of an Assistant Regional Director of the Department of Labor and Employment. In no case, however, shall be the provision of this Article result in the diminution of existing salaries, allowances and benefits of the aforementioned officials. (As amended by RA 6715)
Such hearing shall be held after due and personal notice thereof has been served, in such manner as the Commission shall direct, to all known persons against whom relief is sought, and also to the Chief Executive and other public officials of the province or city within which the unlawful acts have been threatened or committed charged with the duty to protect complainant’s property: Provided, however, That if a complainant shall also allege that, unless a temporary restraining order shall be issued without notice, a substantial and irreparable injury to complainant’s property will be unavoidable, such a temporary restraining order may be issued upon testimony under oath, sufficient, if sustained, to justify the Commission in issuing a temporary injunction upon hearing after notice. Such a temporary restraining order shall be effective for no longer than twenty (20) days and shall become void at the expiration of said twenty (20) days. No such temporary restraining order or temporary injunction shall be issued except on condition that complainant shall first file an undertaking with adequate security in an amount to be fixed by the Commission sufficient to recompense those enjoined for any loss, expense or damage caused by the improvident or erroneous issuance of such order or injunction, including all reasonable costs, together with a reasonable attorney’s fee, and expense of defense against the order or against the granting of any injunctive relief sought in the same proceeding and subsequently denied by the Commission.
ART. 219. Ocular inspection. - The Chairman, any Commissioner, Labor Arbiter or their duly authorized representatives may at any time during working hours conduct an ocular inspection on any establishment, building, ship or vessel, place or premises, including any work, material, implement, machinery, appliance or any object therein, and ask any employee, laborer or any person as the case may be for any information or data concerning any matter or question relative to the object of the investigation.
ART. 220. Compulsory Arbitrators. - The Commission or any Labor Arbiter shall have the power to seek the assistance of other government officials and qualified private citizens to act as compulsory arbitrators on cases referred to them and to fix and assess the fees of such compulsory arbitrators, taking into account the nature of the case, the time consumed in hearing of the case, the professional standing of the arbitrators, the financial capacity of the parties, and the fees provided in the Rules of Court. (Repealed by Sec. 16, BP Blg. 130).
ART. 221. Technical rules not binding and prior resort to amicable settlement. - In any proceeding before the Commission or any of the Labor Arbiters, the rules of evidence prevailing in courts of law or equity shall not be controlling, and it is the spirit and intention of this Code that the Commission and its members and the Labor Arbiters shall use every and all reasonable means to ascertain the facts in each case speedily and objectively, without regard to technicalities of law or procedure, all in the interest of due process. In any proceeding before the Commission or any Labor Arbiter, the parties may be represented by legal counsel but it shall be the duty of the Chairman, any Presiding Commissioner or Commissioner or any Labor Arbiter to exercise complete control of the proceedings at all stages.
ART. 222. Appearances and fees. - (a) Non-lawyers may appear before the Commissioner or any Labor Arbiter only:
(b) No attorney’s fees, negotiation fees or similar charges of any kind arising from any collective bargaining negotiations or conclusion of the collective agreement shall be imposed on any individual member of the contracting union: Provided, however, That attorney’s fees may be charged against union funds in an amount to be agreed upon by the parties. Any contract, agreement or arrangement of any sort to the contrary shall be null and void.
ART. 224. Execution of decisions, orders, or awards. - (a) The Secretary of Labor and Employment or any Regional Director, the Commission or any Labor Arbiter or Med-Arbiter, or the voluntary arbitrator or panel of voluntary arbitrators may, motu propio or on motion of any interested party, issue a writ of execution on a judgment within five (5) years from the date it becomes final and executory, requiring a sheriff or a duly deputized officer to execute or enforce final decisions, orders or awards of the Secretary of Labor and Employment or Regional Director, the Commission, or the Labor Arbiter or Med-Arbiter, or voluntary arbitrator or panel of voluntary arbitrators. In any case, it shall be the duty of the responsible officer to separately furnish immediately the counsel of record and the parties with copies of said decisions, orders or awards. Failure to comply with the duty prescribed herein shall subject such responsible officer to appropriate administrative sanctions.
ART. 225. Contempt powers of the Secretary of Labor and Employment. - In the exercise of his powers under this Code, the Secretary of Labor and Employment may hold any person in direct or indirect contempt and impose the appropriate penalties therefor.
ART. 226. Bureau of Labor Relations. - The Bureau of Labor Relations and the Labor Relations Divisions in the regional offices of the Department of Labor and Employment shall have original and exclusive authority to act, at their own initiative or upon request of either or both parties, on all inter-union and intra-union conflicts, and all disputes, grievances or problems arising from or affecting labor-management relations in all workplaces whether agricultural or non-agricultural, except those arising from the implementation or interpretation of collective bargaining agreements which shall be the subject of grievance procedure and/or voluntary arbitration.
ART. 227. Compromise agreements. - Any compromise settlement, including those involving labor standard laws, voluntarily agreed upon by the parties with the assistance of the Bureau or the regional office of the Secretary of Labor and Employment, shall be final and binding upon the parties. The National Labor Relations Commission or any court shall not assume jurisdiction over issues involved therein except in case of non-compliance thereof or if there is prima facie evidence that the settlement was obtained through fraud, misrepresentation, or coercion.
ART. 228. Indorsement of case to Labor Arbiters. - (a) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this Article, the Labor Arbiter shall entertain only cases indorsed to them for compulsory arbitration by the Bureau or by the Regional Director of the Department of Labor and Employment. All parties to a case shall be furnished by the Bureau or by the Regional Director with a written notice of such indorsement or non-indorsement. The indorsement or non-indorsement of the Regional Director may be appealed to the Bureau within ten working days from receipt of the notice.
ART. 229. Issuance of subpoenas. - The Bureau shall have the power to require the appearance of any person or the production of any paper, document or matter relevant to a labor dispute under its jurisdiction either at the request of any interested party or at its own initiative.
ART. 230. Appointment of bureau personnel. - The Secretary of Labor and Employment may appoint, in addition to the present personnel of the Bureau and the Industrial Relations Divisions, such number of examiners and other assistants as may be necessary to carry out the purpose of this Code. (As amended by RA 6715)
ART. 231. Registry of unions and file of collective agreements. - The Bureau shall keep a registry of legitimate labor organizations. The Bureau shall also maintain a file of all collective bargaining agreements and other related agreements and records of settlement of labor disputes, and copies of orders, and decisions of voluntary arbitrators or panel or voluntary arbitrators. The file shall be open and accessible to interested parties under conditions prescribed by the Secretary of Labor and Employment, provided that no specific information submitted in confidence shall be disclosed unless authorized by the Secretary, or when it is at issue in any judicial litigation or when public interest or national security so requires.
ART. 232. Prohibition on certification election. - The Bureau shall not entertain any petition for certification election or any other action which may disturb the administration of duly registered existing collective bargaining agreements affecting the parties except under Articles 253, 253-A and 256 of this Code. (As amended by RA 6715)
ART. 233. Privileged communication. - Information and statements made at conciliation proceedings shall be treated as privileged communication and shall not be used as evidence in the Commission. Conciliators and similar officials shall not testify in any court or body regarding any matters taken up at conciliation proceedings conducted by them.
ART. 234. Requirements of registration. - Any applicant labor organization, association or group of unions or workers shall acquire legal personality and shall be entitled to the rights and privileges granted by law to legitimate labor organizations upon issuance of the certificate of registration based on the following requirements:
ART. 235. Action on application. - The Bureau shall act on all applications for registration within thirty (30) days from filing.
ART. 236. Denial of registration; appeal. - The decision of the Labor Relations Division in the regional office denying registration may be appealed by the applicant union to the Bureau within ten days from receipt of notice thereof.
ART. 237. Additional requirements for federations or national unions. - Subject to Article 238 if the applicant for registration is a federation or a national union, it shall, in addition to the requirements of the preceding Articles, submit the following:
ART. 238. Conditions for registration of federations or national unions. - No federation or national union shall be registered to engage in any organizational activity in more than one industry in any area or region, and no federation or national union shall be registered to engage in any organizational activity in more than one industry all over the country.
ART. 238. Cancellation of registration, appeal. - The certificate of registration of any legitimate labor organization, whether national or local, shall be cancelled by the Bureau if it has reason to believe, after due hearing, that the said labor organization no longer meets one or more of the requirements herein prescribed.
ART. 239. Grounds for cancellation of union registration. - The following shall constitute grounds for cancellation of union registration:
(g) Asking for or accepting attorney’s fees or negotiation fees from employers;
ART. 240. Equity of the incumbent. - All existing federations and national unions which meet the qualifications of a legitimate labor organization and none of the grounds for cancellation shall continue to maintain their existing affiliates regardless of the nature of the industry and the location of the affiliates.
ART. 241. Rights and conditions of membership in a labor organization. - The following are the rights and conditions of membership in a labor organization:
(m) The books of accounts and other records of the financial activities of any labor organization shall be opened to inspection by any officer or member thereof during office hours;
(o) Other than for mandatory activities under the Code, no special assessment, attorney’s fees, negotiation fees or any other extraordinary fees may be checked off from any amount due an employee without an individual written authorization duly signed by the employee. The authorization should specifically state the amount, purpose and beneficiary of the deduction; and
ART. 242. Rights of legitimate labor organizations. - A legitimate labor organization shall have the right:
ART. 243. Coverage and employees’ right to self-organization. - All persons employed in commercial, industrial and agricultural enterprises and in religious, charitable, medical or educational institutions whether operating for profit or not, shall have the right to self-organization and to form, join or assist labor organizations of their own choosing for purposes of collective bargaining. Ambulant, intermittent and itinerant workers, self-employed people, rural workers and those without any definite employers may form labor organizations for the purpose of enhancing and defending their interests and for their mutuald and protection.
ART. 244. Right of employees in the public service. - Employees of government corporations established under the Corporation Code shall have the right to organize and to bargain collectively with their respective employers. All other employees in the civil service shall have the right to form associations for purposes not contrary to law.
ART. 245. Ineligibility of managerial employees to join any labor organization; right of supervisory employees. - Managerial employees are not eligible to join, assist or form any labor organization. Supervisory employees shall not be eligible for membership in a labor organization of the rank-and-file employees but may join, assist or form separate labor organizations of their own. (As amended by RA 6715)
ART. 246. Non-abridgement of right to self-organization. - It shall be unlawful for any person to restrain, coerce, discriminate against or unduly interfere with employees and workers in their exercise of the right to self-organization. Such right shall include the right to form, join, or assist labor organizations for the purpose of collective bargaining through representatives of their own choosing and to engage in lawfuld and protection, subject to the provisions of Article 264 of this Code.
ART. 247. Concept of unfair labor practice and procedure for prosecution thereof . - Unfair labor practices violate the constitutional right of workers and employees to self-organization, are inimical to the legitimate interests of both labor and management, including their right to bargain collectively and otherwise deal with each other in an atmosphere of freedom and mutual respect, disrupt industrial peace and hinder the promotion of healthy and stable labor-management relations.
Subject to the exercise by the President or by the Secretary of Labor and Employment of the powers vested in them by Articles 263 and 264 of this Code, the civil aspects of all cases involving unfair labor practices, which may include claims for actual, moral, exemplary and other forms of damages, attorney’s fees and other affirmative relief, shall be under the jurisdiction of the Labor Arbiters. The Labor Arbiters shall give utmost priority to the hearing and resolution of all cases involving unfair labor practices. They shall resolve such cases within thirty (30) calendar days from the time they are submitted for decision. (As amended by RA 6715)
ART. 248. Unfair labor practices of employers. - It shall be unlawful for an employer to commit any of the following unfair labor practices:
ART. 249. Unfair labor practices of labor organizations. - It shall be unfair labor practice for a labor organization, its officers, agents, or representatives:
(e) To ask for or accept negotiation or attorney’s fees from employers as part of the settlement of any issue in collective bargaining or any other dispute; or
ART. 250. Procedure in collective bargaining. - The following procedures shall be observed in collective bargaining:
ART. 251. Duty to bargain collectively in the absence of collective bargaining agreements. - In the absence of an agreement or other voluntary arrangement providing for a more expeditious manner of collective bargaining, it shall be the duty of the employer and the representatives of the employees to bargain collectively in accordance with the provisions of this Code.
ART. 252. Meaning of duty to bargain collectively. - The duty to bargain collectively means the performance of a mutual obligation to meet and convene promptly and expeditiously in good faith for the purpose of negotiating an agreement with respect to wages, hours of work and all other terms and conditions of employment including proposals for adjusting any grievances or questions arising under such agreement and executing a contract incorporating such agreements if requested by either party, but such duty does not compel any party to agree to a proposal or to make any concession.
ART. 253. Duty to bargain collectively when there exists a collective bargaining agreement. - When there is a collective bargaining agreement, the duty to bargain collectively shall also mean that neither party shall terminate or modify such agreement during its lifetime. However, either party can serve a written notice to terminate or modify the agreement at least sixty (60) days prior to its expiration date. It shall be the duty of both parties to keep the status quo and to continue in full force and effect the term and conditions of the existing agreement during the 60-day period and/or until a new agreement is reached by the parties.
ART. 253-A. Terms of a collective bargaining agreement. - Any collective bargaining agreement that the parties may enter into shall, insofar as the representation aspect is concerned, be for a term of five (5) years. No petition questioning the majority status of the incumbent bargaining agent shall be entertained and no certification election shall be conducted by the Department of Labor and Employment outside of the sixty-day period immediately before the date of expiry of such five year term of the collective bargaining agreement. All other provisions of the collective bargaining agreement shall be renegotiated not later than three (3) years after its execution. Any agreement on such other provisions of the collective bargaining agreement entered into within six (6) months from the date of expiry of the term of such other provisions as fixed in the collective bargaining agreement, shall retroact to the day immediately following such date. If any such agreement is entered into beyond six months, the parties shall agree on the duration of retroactivity thereof. In case of a deadlock in the renegotiation of the collective bargaining agreement, the parties may exercise their rights under this Code. (As amended by RA 6715)
ART. 254. Injunction prohibited. - No temporary or permanent injunction or restraining order in any case involving or growing out of labor disputes shall be issued by any court or other entity, except as otherwise provided in Articles 218 and 264 of this Code. (As amended by BP Blg. 227)
ART. 255. Exclusive bargaining representation and workers’ participation in policy and decision-making. - 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 employee in such unit for the purpose of collective bargaining. However, an individual employee or group of employees shall have the right at any time to present grievances to their employer.
ART. 256. Representation issue in organized establishments. - In organized establishments, when a verified petition questioning the majority status of the incumbent bargaining agent is filed before the Department of Labor and Employment within the sixty-day period before the expiration of a collective bargaining agreement, the Med-Arbiter shall automatically order an election by secret ballot when the verified petition is supported by the written consent of at least twenty-five percent (25%) of all the employees in the appropriate bargaining unit. To have a valid election, at least a majority of all eligible voters in the unit must have cast their votes. The labor union receiving the majority of the valid votes cast shall be certified as the exclusive bargaining agent of all the workers in the unit. When an election which provides for three or more choices results in no choice receiving a majority of the valid votes cast, a run-off election shall be conducted between the labor unions receiving the two highest number of votes: Provided, That the total number of votes for all contending unions is at least fifty percent (50%) of the number of votes cast.
ART. 257. Petitions in unorganized establishments. - In any establishment where there is no certified bargaining agent, a certification election shall automatically be conducted by the Med-Arbiter upon the filing of a petition by a legitimate labor organization. (As amended by RA 6715)
ART. 258. When an employer may file petition. - When requested to bargain collectively, an employer may petition the Bureau for an election. If there is no existing certified collective bargaining agreement in the unit, the Bureau shall, after hearing, order a certification election.
ART. 259. Appeal from certification election orders. - Any party to an election may appeal the order or results of the election as determined by the Med-Arbiter directly to the Secretary of Labor and Employment on the ground that the rules and regulations or parts thereof established by the Secretary of Labor and Employment for the conduct of the election have been violated. Such appeal shall be decided within fifteen (15) calendar days. (As amended by RA 6715)
ART. 260. Grievance machinery and voluntary arbitration. - The parties to a collective bargaining agreement shall include therein provisions that will ensure the mutual observance of its terms and conditions. They shall establish a machinery for the adjustment and resolution of grievances arising from the interpretation or implementation of their collective bargaining agreement and those arising from the interpretation or enforcement of company personnel policies.
ART. 261. Jurisdiction of voluntary arbitrators and panel of voluntary arbitrators. - The Voluntary Arbitrator or panel of Voluntary Arbitrators shall have original and exclusive jurisdiction to hear and decide all unresolved grievances arising from the interpretation or implementation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement and those arising from the interpretation or enforcement of company personnel policies referred to in the immediately preceding Article. Accordingly, violations of a Collective Bargaining Agreement, except those which are gross in character, shall no longer be treated as unfair labor practice and shall be resolved as grievances under the Collective Bargaining Agreement. For purposes of this Article, gross violations of a Collective Bargaining Agreement shall mean flagrant and/or malicious refusal to comply with the economic provisions of such agreement.
ART. 262. Jurisdiction over other labor disputes. - The voluntary arbitrator or panel of voluntary arbitrators, upon agreement of the parties, shall also hear and decide all other labor disputes including unfair labor practices and bargaining deadlocks. (As added by RA 6715)
ART. 262-A. Procedures. - The voluntary arbitrator or panel of voluntary arbitrators shall have the power to hold hearings, receive evidences and take whatever action is necessary to resolve the issue or issues subject of the dispute, including efforts to effect a voluntary settlement between parties.
ART. 262-B. Cost of Voluntary Arbitration and Voluntary Arbitrator’s fee. - The parties to a Collective Bargaining Agreement shall provide therein a proportionate sharing scheme on the cost of Voluntary Arbitration including the Voluntary Arbitrator’s fee. The fixing of fee of Voluntary Arbitrators or panel of Voluntary Arbitrators, whether shouldered wholly by the parties or subsidized by the Special Voluntary Arbitration Fund, shall take into account the following factors:
ART. 263. Strikes, picketing and lockouts. - (a) It is the policy of the State to encourage free trade unionism and free collective bargaining.
ART. 264. Prohibited activities. - (a) No labor organization or employer shall declare a strike or lockout without first having bargained collectively in accordance with Title VII of this Book or without first having filed the notice required in the preceding Article or without the necessary strike or lockout vote first having been obtained and reported to the Department.
(b) No person shall obstruct, impede or interfere with by force, violence, coercion, threats or intimidation any peaceful picketing by employees during any labor controversy or in the exercise of the right of self-organization or collective bargaining or shall or abet such obstruction or interference.
(e) No person engaged in picketing shall commit any act of violence, coercion or intimidation or obstruct the free ingress to or egress from the employer’s premises for lawful purposes, or obstruct public thoroughfares.
ART. 265. Improved offer balloting. - In an effort to settle a strike, the Department of Labor and Employment shall conduct a referendum by secret balloting on the improved offer of the employer on or before the 30th day of the strike. When at least a majority of the union members vote to accept the improved offer, the striking workers shall immediately return to work and the employer shall thereupon readmit them upon the signing of the agreement.
ART. 266. Requirement for arrest and detention. - Except on grounds of national security and public peace, no union members or union organizers may be arrested or detained for union activities without previous consultations with the Secretary of Labor and Employment.
ART. 267. Assistance by the Department of Labor and Employment. - The Department of Labor and Employment, at the initiative of the Secretary of Labor and Employment, shall extend special assistance to the organization for purposes of collective bargaining of the most underprivileged workers who, for reasons of occupation, organizational structure or insufficient incomes are not normally covered by major labor organizations or federations.
ART. 268. Assistance by the Institute for Labor and Manpower Studies. - The Institute for Labor and Manpower Studies shall render technical and other forms of assistance to labor organizations and employer organizations in the field of labor education, especially pertaining to collective bargaining, arbitration, labor standards and the Labor Code of the Philippines in general.
ART. 269. Prohibition against aliens; exceptions. - All alien, natural or juridical, as well as all foreign organizations are strictly prohibited from engaging directly or indirectly in all forms of trade union activities without prejudice to normal contacts between Philippine labor unions and recognized international labor centers: Provided, however, That aliens working in the country with valid permits issued by the Department of Labor and Employment may exercise the right to self-organization and join or assist labor organizations of their own choosing for purposes of collective bargaining: Provided, further, That said aliens are nationals of a country which grants the same or similar rights to Filipino workers. (As amended by RA 6715)
ART. 270. Regulation of foreign assistance. - (a) No foreign individual, organization or entity may give any donations, grants or other forms of assistance, in cash or in kind, directly or indirectly, to any labor organization, group of workers or any auxiliary thereof, such as cooperativ es, credit unions and institutions engaged in research, education or communication, in relation to trade union activities without prior permission by the Secretary of Labor and Employment.
(b) This prohibition shall equally apply to foreign donations, grants or other forms of assistance, in cash or in kind, given directly or indirectly to any employer or employer’s organization to support any activity or activities affecting trade unions.
ART. 271. Applicability to farm tenants and rural workers. - The provisions of this Title pertaining to foreign organizations and activities shall be deemed applicable to all organizations of farm tenants, rural workers and the like, provided that in appropriate cases the Secretary of Agrarian Reform shall exercise the powers and responsibilities vested by this Title in the Secretary of Labor and Employment.
ART. 272. Penalties. - (a) Any person violating any of the provisions of Article 264 of this Code shall be punished by a fine of not less than one thousand pesos (P1,000.00) nor more than ten thousand pesos (P10,000.00) and/or imprisonment for not less than three (3) months nor more than three (3) years, or both such fine and imprisonment, at the discretion of the court. Prosecution under this provision shall preclude prosecution for the same act under the Revised Penal Code, and vice versa. (As amended by RA 6715)
ART. 273. Study of labor-management relations. - The Secretary of Labor and Employment shall have the power and it shall be his duty to inquire into:
ART. 274. Visitorial power. - The Secretary of Labor and Employment or his duly authorized representative is hereby empowered to inquire into the financial activities of legitimate labor organizations upon the filing of a complainant under oath and duly supported by the written consent of at least twenty percent (20%) of the total membership of the labor organization concerned and to examine their books of accounts and other records to determine compliance or non-compliance with the law and to prosecute any violations of the law and the union constitution and by-laws: Provided, That such inquiry or examination shall not be conducted during the sixty (60) day freedom period nor within thirty (30) days immediately preceding the date of election of union officials. (As amended by RA 6715)
ART. 275. Tripartism and tripartite conferences. - (a) Tripartism in labor relations is hereby declared a State policy. Towards this end, workers and employers shall, as far as practicable, be represented in decision and policy-making bodies of the government.
ART. 276. Government employees. - The terms and conditions of employment of all government employees, including employees of government-owned and controlled corporations, shall be governed by the Civil Service Law, rules and regulations. Their salaries shall be standardized by the National Assembly as provided for in the new constitution. However, there shall be no reduction of existing wages, benefits and other terms and conditions of employment being enjoyed by them at the time of the adoption of this Code.
ART. 277. Miscellaneous provisions. - (a) All unions are authorized to collect reasonable membership fees, union dues, assessments and fines and other contributions for labor education and research, mutual death and hospitalization benefits, welfare fund, strike fund and credit and cooperative undertakings. (As amended by RA 6715)
(f) A Special Voluntary Arbitration Fund is hereby established in the Board to subsidize the cost of voluntary arbitration in cases involving the interpretation and implementation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, including the Arbitrator’s fees, and for such other related purposes to promote and develop voluntary arbitration. The Board shall administer the Special Voluntary Arbitration Fund in accordance with the guidelines it may adopt upon the recommendation of the Council, which guidelines shall be subject to the approval of the Secretary of Labor and Employment. Continuing funds needed for this purpose in the initial yearly amount of fifteen million pesos (P15,000,000.00) shall be provided in the 1989 and subsequent annual General Appropriations Acts.
ART. 279. Security of Tenure. - In cases of regular employment, the employer shall not terminate the services of an employee except for a just cause or when authorized by this Title. An employee who is unjustly dismissed from work shall be entitled to reinstatement without loss of seniority rights and to his backwages computed from the time his compensation was withheld from him up to time of his actual reinstatement. (As amended by RA 6715)
ART. 280. Regular and casual employment. - The provisions of written agreement to the contrary notwithstanding and regardless of the oral agreements of the parties, an employment shall be deemed to be regular where the employee has been engaged to perform activities which are usually necessary or desirable in the usual business or trade of the employer except where the employment has been fixed for a specific project or undertaking, the completion or termination of which has been determined at the time of the engagement of the employee or where the work or service to be performed is seasonal in nature and the employment is for the duration of the season.
ART. 282. Termination by employer. - An employer may terminate an employment for any of the following just causes:
ART. 283. Closure of establishment and reduction of personnel. - The employer may also terminate the employment of any employee due to the installation of labor-saving devices, redundancy, retrenchment to prevent losses or the closing or cessation of operation of the establishment or undertaking unless the closing is for the purpose of circumventing the provisions of this title, by serving a written notice on the workers and the Department of Labor and Employment at least one (1) month before the intended date thereof. In case of termination due to the installation of labor-saving devices or redundancy, the worker affected thereby shall be entitled to a separation pay equivalent to at least one (1) month pay or to at least one (1) month pay for every year of service, whichever is higher. In case of retrenchment to prevent losses and in cases of closures or cessation of operations of establishment or undertaking not due to serious business losses or financial reverses, the separation pay shall be equivalent to one (1) month pay or at least one-half (1/2) month pay for every year of service, whichever is higher. A fraction of at least six (6) months shall be considered one (1) whole year.
ART. 284. Disease as ground for termination. - An employer may terminate the services of an employee who has been found to be suffering from any disease and whose continued employment is prohibited by law or is prejudicial to his health as well as the health of his co-employees: Provided, That he is paid separation pay equivalent to at least one month salary or to one-half month salary for every year of service, whichever is greater, a fraction of at least six months being considered as one whole year.
ART. 285. Termination by employee. - (a) An employee may terminate without just cause the employee-employer relationship by serving a written notice on the employer at least one month in advance. The employer upon whom no such notice was served may hold the employee liable for damages.
ART. 286. When employment not deemed terminated. - The bona fide suspension of the operation of a business or undertaking for a period not exceeding six months, or the fulfillment by the employee of a military or civic duty shall not terminate employment. In all such cases, the employer shall reinstate the employee to his former position without loss of seniority rights if he indicates his desire to resume his work not later than one month from the resumption of operations of his employer or from his relief from the military or civic duty.
In case of retirement, the employee shall be entitled to receive such retirement benefits as he may have earned under existing laws and any collective bargaining or other agreements: Provided, however, That an employee’s retirement benefits under any collective bargaining and other agreements shall not be less than those provided herein.
Unless the parties provide for broader inclusions, the term “one half (1/2) month” salary shall mean fifteen (15) days plus one-twelfth (1/12) of the 13th month pay and the cash equivalent of not more than five (5) days of service incentive leaves.
ART. 288. Penalties. - Except as otherwise provided in this Code, or unless the act complained of hinges on a question of interpretation or implementation of ambiguous provisions of an existing collective bargaining agreement any violation of the provisions of this Code declared to be unlawful or penal in nature shall be punished with a fine of not less than One Thousand Pesos (P1,000.00) nor more than Ten Thousand Pesos (P10,000.00), or imprisonment of not less than three months nor more than three years, or both such fine and imprisonment at the discretion of the court.
ART. 290. Offenses. - Offenses penalized under this Code and the rules and regulations issued pursuant thereto shall prescribe in three years.
ART. 291. Money claims. - All money claims arising from employer-employee relations accruing during the effectivity of this Code shall be filed within three years from the time the cause of action accrued; otherwise they shall be forever barred.
Workmen’s compensation claims accruing prior to the effectivity of this Code and during the period from November 1, 1974 up to December 31, 1974, shall be filed with the appropriate regional offices of the Department of Labor and Employment not later than March 31, 1975; otherwise they shall be forever barred. These claims shall be processed and adjudicated in accordance with the law and rules at the time their causes of action accrued.
ART. 294. Secretary of Labor and Employment to initiate integration of maternity leave benefits. - Within six months after this Code takes effect, the Secretary of Labor and Employment shall initiate such measures as may be necessary for the integration of maternity leave benefits into the Social Security System in the case of Private employment and the Government Service Insurance System in the case of public employment.
ART. 295. Funding of the Overseas Employment Development Board and the National Seamen Board. - The Overseas Employment Development Board and the National Seaman Board referred to in Articles 16 and 20, respectively, of this Code shall initially be funded out of the unprogrammed fund of the Department of Labor and Employment and the National Manpower and Youth Council.
ART. 296. Termination of the workmen’s compensation program. - The Bureau of Workmen’s Compensation, Workmen’s Compensation Commission, and the Workmen’s Compensation Units in the regional offices of the Department of Labor and Employment shall continue to exercise the functions and the respective jurisdictions over workmen’s compensation cases vested upon them by Rep. Act. No. 3428, as amended, otherwise known as the Workmen’s Compensation Act, until March 31, 1976. Likewise the term of office of incumbent members of the Workmen’s Compensation Commission, including its Chairmen, and any Commissioner deemed retired as of December 31, 1975 as well as the present employees and officials of the Bureau of Workmen’s Compensation Unit shall continue up to that date. Thereafter, said office shall be considered abolished and all officials and personnel thereof shall be transferred to and mandatorily absorbed by the Department of Labor and Employment, subject to Presidential Decree No. 6, Letters of Instructions Nos. 14 and 14-A and the Civil Service Laws and rules.
Such amount as may be necessary to cover the operational expenses of the Bureau of Workmen’s Compensation, the Workmen’s Compensation Units, including the salaries of incumbent personnel for the period up to March 31, 1976 shall be appropriated from the unprogrammed funds of the Department of Labor and Employment.
ART. 298. Abolition of the Court of Industrial Relations and the National Labor Relations Commission. - The Court of Industrial Relations and the National Labor Relations Commission established under Presidential Decree No. 21 are hereby abolished. All unexpended funds, properties, equipment and records of the Court of Industrial Relations, and such of its personnel as may be necessary, are hereby transferred to the Commission and to its regional branches. All unexpended funds, properties, and equipment of the National Labor Relations Commission established under Presidential Decree No. 21 are transferred to the Bureau of Labor Relations. Personnel not absorbed by or transferred to the Commission shall enjoy benefits granted under existing laws.
ART. 299. Disposition of pending cases. - All cases pending before the Court of Industrial Relations and the National Labor Relations Commission established under Presidential Decree No. 21 on the date of effectivity of this Code shall be transferred to and processed by the corresponding Labor Relations Division or the National Labor Relations Commission created under this Code having cognizance of the same in accordance with the procedure laid down herein and its implementing rules and regulations. Cases on labor relations on appeal with the Secretary of Labor and Employment or the Office of the President of the Philippines as of the date of effectivity of this Code shall remain under their respective jurisdiction and shall be decided in accordance with the rules and regulations in force at the time of appeal.
All workmen’s compensation cases pending before the Workmen’s Compensation Units in the regional offices of the Department of Labor and Employment and those pending before the Workmen’s Compensation Commission as of March 31, 1975, shall be processed and adjudicated in accordance with the law, rules and procedure existing prior to the effectivity of the Employees’ Compensation Commission and State Insurance Fund.
ART. 300. Personnel whose services are terminated. - Personnel of agencies or any of their subordinate units whose services are terminated as a result of the implementation of this Code shall enjoy the rights and protection provided in Sections 5 and 6 of Republic Act numbered fifty-four hundred and thirty-five and such other pertinent laws, rules and regulations. In any case, no lay-off shall be effected until funds to cover the gratuity and/or retirement benefits of those laid off are duly certified as available.