GR 184933; (April, 2016) (Digest)
G.R. No. 184933 , April 13, 2016
Violeta Balba, for and in behalf of her minor children Roy Vince and Vienna Gracia, both surnamed Balba, Petitioners, vs. Tiwala Human Resources, Inc., and/or Togo Maritime Corp., Respondents.
FACTS
Rogelio Balba was employed as a chief cook by respondents under a 10-month contract commencing November 1998. He was declared fit to work in his pre-employment medical examination. Upon contract expiration in October 1999, he was repatriated. Shortly after repatriation, from October to November 1999, he was treated for weakness and numbness and was diagnosed with moderately severe diabetes. In 2000, he was confined and diagnosed with metastatic cancer. He filed a complaint for disability benefits in April 2000 but succumbed to lung cancer in July 2000. His heirs were substituted as complainants, amending the claim to one for death benefits.
ISSUE
Whether the petitioners are entitled to death and burial benefits under the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration Standard Employment Contract (POEA-SEC) on account of Rogelio Balba’s death.
RULING
The Supreme Court denied the petition, affirming the Court of Appeals’ reversal of the NLRC award. The Court held that for an illness and resulting death to be compensable under the POEA-SEC, the seafarer must prove that the illness is work-related, meaning it was contracted during the term of the employment contract and that the working conditions increased the risk of contracting the disease. The Court found no substantial evidence linking Rogelio’s lung cancer to his work as a chief cook. His pre-employment medical examination declared him fit, and the illness manifested only after his contract had ended. The medical reports did not establish that his working conditions aboard the vessel caused or aggravated his condition. While the Court adheres to the principle of liberality in favor of seafarers, compensation cannot be awarded based on surmises. When the evidence negates compensability, the claim must be denied to avoid injustice to the employer. Consequently, the petitioners failed to discharge the burden of proving that the death was compensable under the POEA-SEC.