Pregnant pilot illegally dismissed by PAL in 1998, rules SC

The Supreme Court has upheld the dismissal of Philippine Airlines pilots who participated in a strike that was deemed illegal in 1998, except for one who was found to be nine months pregnant at that time.

In a 36-page unanimous decision penned by Associate Justice Teresita Leonardo-De Castro, the SC First Division partially granted a petition from the airlines seeking to uphold the dismissal of members of the Airline Pilots Association of the Philippines who staged a strike on June 5, 1998 over alleged unfair labor practices and union-busting by PAL.

The SC, however, said that one of the pilots, Gladys Jadie, was illegally dismissed because she was already on maternity leave at the time, making it obvious that she did not join the strike and could not be reasonably expected to report back for work by June 9, 1998 in compliance with the Return-to-Work Order.

On December 9, 1997, the ALPAP filed with the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB) a Notice of Strike.

Despite previous orders of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) prohibiting all actual and impending strikes and lockouts, ALPAP filed a second Notice of Strike on June 5, 1998 and staged a strike on the same day.

The DOLE immediately called PAL and ALPAP for conciliation conferences on June 6 and 7, 1998 to amicably settle the dispute between them.

After its efforts failed, the DOLE issued a Return-to-Work Order on June 7, 1998, directing the striking officers and members of ALPAP to return to work within 24 hours from receipt.

On June 26, 1998, the members of ALPAP reported for work but PAL did not accept them on the ground that the 24-hour period for the strikers to return set by the DOLE in its Return-to-Work order had already lapsed, resulting in the forfeiture of their employment.

On June 1, 1999, the DOLE declared the strike of June 5, 1998 as illegal and that all ALPAP officers and members who participated therein had lost their employment status.

In its respective decisions, both the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) and the Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal of the employees and held that Jadie can no longer be reinstated for the following reasons:

“(1) Jadie’s former position as Captain of the E-50 aircraft no longer existed as said aircraft was already returned to its lessors in accordance with the Amended and Restated Rehabilitation Plan of PAL;

(2) Per Air Transportation Office certification, her license expired in 1998;

(3) the animosity between the parties as engendered by the protracted and heated litigation;

(4) the possibility that she had already secured equivalent or other employment after the significant lapse of time since the institution of the Illegal Dismissal Case; and

(5) the nature of the business of PAL which requires the continuous operations of its planes and, thus, the hiring of new pilots.”

Since Jadie can no longer be reinstated, the SC instead ordered PAL to give her separation pay and benefits prior to her illegal dismissal. “All monetary awards due Jadie shall earn interest of 6% per annum from date of finality of this Decision until fully paid,” ruled the SC.

In determining who should be dismissed, the SC considered both the logbook containing the names of those who participated in the strike and the photographs that showed the petitioners actually participating in the demonstration.

“The objection that the photographs were not properly authenticated deserves scant consideration as rules of evidence are not strictly observed in proceedings before administrative bodies like the NLRC, where decisions may be reached on the basis of position papers only,” ruled the SC.

The SC also noted that "those caught on the photographs did not categorically deny being at the strike area on the time/s and date/s the photographs were taken."

The protesters had asserted they were at the strike "in lawful exercise of their right while on official leave or scheduled off-duty, or in the alternative, that they were already dismissed from service as early as June 7, 1998 and their presence at the strike area thereafter was already irrelevant." -NB, GMA News