GR 112630; (September, 1997) (Digest)
G.R. No. 112630 September 5, 1997
CORAZON JAMER and CRISTINA AMORTIZADO, petitioners, vs. NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS COMMISSION, ISETANN DEPARTMENT STORE and/or JOHN GO, respondents.
FACTS
Petitioners Corazon Jamer and Cristina Amortizado were store cashiers for respondent Isetann Department Store. Their duties included reconciling daily cash sales from floor clerks with tally sheets and depositing the funds. On July 16, 1990, they discovered a cash shortage of P15,353.78. They did not immediately report it, hoping to find the cause, but informed management the following day. They, along with another cashier, were placed under preventive suspension and required to submit written explanations. After an administrative investigation, the employer’s Committee on Discipline found them responsible for the shortage and an additional under-deposit of P450.00. They were dismissed for dishonesty on August 31, 1990. The Labor Arbiter ruled the dismissal illegal, ordering reinstatement with backwages. The NLRC reversed this decision, validating the dismissal.
ISSUE
Whether the National Labor Relations Commission committed grave abuse of discretion in upholding the dismissal of the petitioners for dishonesty.
RULING
Yes. The Supreme Court granted the petition, annulled the NLRC decision, and reinstated the Labor Arbiter’s ruling. The Court found that the NLRC’s conclusion of dishonesty lacked substantial evidence. The employer failed to prove that the petitioners committed a dishonest act or were guilty of willful breach of trust. The mere existence of a cash shortage, without proof of fraudulent intent or personal misappropriation, does not constitute dishonesty warranting dismissal. As cashiers, petitioners held positions of trust, but loss of trust must be founded on willful wrongdoing. The employer did not establish that the shortage resulted from petitioners’ malicious intent or personal gain. The procedural requirement of a hearing was also not meaningfully complied with, as the investigation was more accusatory than exploratory. The dismissal, being illegal, entitles petitioners to reinstatement with full backwages and attorney’s fees. The NLRC’s disregard of the lack of evidence for a just cause constituted grave abuse of discretion.