GR 122078; (April, 1999) (Digest)
G.R. No. 122078 April 21, 1999
PHILIPPINE RABBIT BUS LINES, INC., petitioner, vs. NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS COMMISSION AND PROCOPIO EVANGELISTA, respondents.
FACTS
Procopio Evangelista was dismissed by Philippine Rabbit Bus Lines in 1975. In 1978, the Office of the President, through Presidential Assistant Ronaldo Zamora, found his dismissal illegal due to procedural defects, despite a finding of just cause. The decision, which became final and executory, ordered his reinstatement with six months’ back wages. While the monetary award was satisfied, petitioner persistently refused to reinstate Evangelista despite several writs of execution. In 1989, Evangelista manifested his willingness to accept separation pay in lieu of reinstatement.
ISSUE
Whether the National Labor Relations Commission committed grave abuse of discretion in: (1) ordering the payment of additional back wages and separation pay based on a 1989 wage rate, and (2) allowing execution by mere motion of a 1978 decision after a lapse of more than five years.
RULING
The Supreme Court affirmed the NLRC decision. On the first issue, the award of separation pay in lieu of reinstatement and additional back wages was justified. Since the final 1978 order mandated reinstatement and petitioner unlawfully refused to comply, Evangelista was entitled to back wages for the period he was not reinstated, up to the point he opted for separation pay in 1989. The computation based on the 1989 wage rate was equitable, as separation pay aims to provide financial assistance for the loss of employment.
On the second issue, execution by mere motion after five years was permissible. The five-year rule for execution by motion is not absolute. Delay attributable to the judgment debtor warrants relaxation of the rule. Here, the prolonged non-execution was caused by petitioner’s own dilatory tactics and persistent refusal to reinstate Evangelista. Technical procedural rules must yield to labor law’s substantive objective of securing social justice for workers. The finality of the 1978 decision rendered it immutable; petitioner could no longer assail its merits.