G.R. No. 117038 September 25, 1997
PHILIPPINE AIRLINES, INC., petitioner, vs. NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS COMMISSION, AVELINO MICABALO and PROSPERO ENRIQUEZ, respondents.

FACTS

Private respondents Avelino Micabalo and Prospero Enriquez were employees of petitioner Philippine Airlines, Inc. (PAL) assigned at its Davao Station. Micabalo was hired as a ticket freight clerk in 1979, and Enriquez as a load control clerk in 1975. Both were officials of the Philippine Airlines Employees Association (PALEA). An audit check by PAL at its Davao Station discovered irregularities wherein employees procured for themselves money paid by passengers for tickets and then charged the payments to their or their co-employees’ credit cards. To conceal this, the audit coupon and flight coupon of the tickets had different entries in the “Form of Payment” box (e.g., “Cash/Charge” in audit coupon vs. “Cash” or blank in flight coupon).
Micabalo was administratively charged for fraud and falsification of company documents. The charges detailed multiple instances where he used his credit card to pay for passenger tickets, and the flight coupons reflected “Cash” or were blank while the audit coupons showed “Charge.” In his defense, Micabalo claimed he charged the tickets as a favor to passengers lacking funds, that he corrected erroneous entries to make them truthful, and that he derived no personal gain. He was subsequently dismissed.
Enriquez was similarly charged with fraud and unbecoming conduct for soliciting cash payments from a passenger and then charging the tickets to his own credit card, allegedly using the cash to negotiate for a live band. He denied the charges, claiming the transactions were aboveboard and the money was for band equipment, not personal use. He was also dismissed.
The Labor Arbiter ruled the dismissals illegal, finding the charges not substantiated by clear and convincing evidence and that the penalty was too harsh. The National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) affirmed this decision. PAL filed this special civil action for certiorari.

ISSUE

Whether the National Labor Relations Commission committed grave abuse of discretion in affirming the Labor Arbiter’s decision that the dismissals of private respondents Avelino Micabalo and Prospero Enriquez were illegal.

RULING

Yes. The Supreme Court granted the petition, reversed the NLRC resolutions, and dismissed the complaint for illegal dismissal. The Court held that the findings of the Labor Arbiter and the NLRC were not supported by substantial evidence. The evidence presented by PAL, including the tickets with discrepant entries and the employees’ admissions regarding the procedure, constituted substantial evidence proving the commission of fraud and falsification. The private respondents’ acts of making different entries in the flight and audit coupons were intentional falsifications meant to conceal the true mode of payment. Their defenses were deemed unmeritorious. The offenses involved serious breaches of trust, and their repeated commission over time justified the penalty of dismissal. The law cannot compel an employer to retain employees guilty of such acts which are patently inimical to the employer’s interest.