GR 155389; (February, 2005) (Digest)
G.R. No. 155389 ; February 28, 2005
DMA SHIPPING PHILIPPINES, INC. and MONSOON MARITIME SERVICES PTE. LTD., petitioners, vs. HENRY CABILLAR and NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS COMMISSION (Fourth Division), respondents.
FACTS
Petitioner Monsoon Maritime Services Pte. Ltd., a Singapore-based foreign corporation, owns the M/V Eagle Moon, with DMA Shipping Phils. Inc. as its manning agent. Respondent Henry Cabillar was hired as Chief Officer. On August 20, 1994, in Calcutta, India, gantry crane operators staged a strike. The ship master instructed Cabillar to dissuade the crew from striking, but Cabillar instead joined the work stoppage, which lasted four hours. The master logged the incident and later noted Cabillar’s dismissal for a disciplinary offense.
Upon the vessel’s arrival in Singapore on September 1, 1994, company officers informed Cabillar of his dismissal due to the Calcutta incident. Cabillar later filed a complaint for illegal dismissal, claiming he was forced to resign under threat. Petitioners countered that Cabillar was given the option to resign to avoid a dismissal record, which he accepted, and was paid accordingly. The Labor Arbiter and the NLRC ruled in favor of Cabillar, declaring the dismissal illegal. The Court of Appeals affirmed the NLRC decision.
ISSUE
Whether or not the dismissal of Henry Cabillar was legal.
RULING
The Supreme Court denied the petition and affirmed the illegal dismissal ruling. The legal logic centers on the petitioners’ failure to comply with the twin requirements of substantive and procedural due process under the Standard Employment Contract (SEC) governing overseas seafarers. Substantively, while joining an illegal strike may constitute serious misconduct warranting dismissal, the Court found that Cabillar’s act of joining a brief, isolated strike did not amount to the willful disobedience or gross misconduct necessary for a valid termination under the law.
More critically, the dismissal was procedurally infirm. The SEC mandates specific disciplinary steps: a written notice of charges, a formal investigation where the seafarer can defend himself, and a written notice of penalty. The master of the vessel did not furnish Cabillar with any written charge, nor conduct a formal hearing. Cabillar was merely verbally informed of his dismissal in Singapore. The petitioners’ claim that Cabillar voluntarily resigned was rejected, as the “choice” given to him was a product of the already-effected illegal dismissal, making the resignation involuntary. Consequently, for failure to observe due process, the dismissal was declared illegal. However, following the doctrine in Agabon v. NLRC, the award of full backwages was deleted, and petitioners were ordered to pay Cabillar indemnity in the amount of ₱30,000.00 for the procedural violation.