GR L 56699; (January, 1983) (Digest)
March 16, 2026GR 164940; (November, 2007) (Digest)
March 16, 2026G.R. No. 185122; August 16, 2010
WENSHA SPA CENTER, INC. and/or XU ZHI JIE, Petitioners, vs. LORETA T. YUNG, Respondent.
FACTS
Respondent Loreta T. Yung was hired as an administrative manager by Wensha Spa Center, Inc. After introducing positive changes that increased business, she was asked to take a one-month paid leave. Upon her return on September 10, 2004, petitioners, through president Xu Zhi Jie, demanded her resignation because a Feng Shui master advised that her aura did not match that of Xu. Loreta refused and was effectively dismissed, prompting her to file an illegal dismissal case.
Petitioners contested the claim, alleging Loreta was terminated for loss of trust and confidence due to employee complaints, habitual tardiness, and unauthorized charges. The Labor Arbiter and the NLRC dismissed Loreta’s complaint, finding the Feng Shui reason dubious and instead crediting the employer’s claim of loss of trust. The Court of Appeals reversed this decision, finding grave abuse of discretion in the NLRC’s factual appreciation.
ISSUE
Whether the Court of Appeals erred in reversing the NLRC and finding that respondent was illegally dismissed.
RULING
The Supreme Court affirmed the CA decision, ruling that Loreta was illegally dismissed. The Court held that the burden of proving the validity of dismissal rests on the employer. Petitioners failed to discharge this burden as their evidence was riddled with fatal infirmities. The affidavits from their witnesses were mere photocopies and not executed under oath, rendering them hearsay and without probative value. The sales reports and order slips allegedly proving unauthorized charges bore no name or signature linking them to Loreta. The daily time records were also mere photocopies, violating the best evidence rule. The general allegations in the sworn affidavit of the operations manager were unsubstantiated. Consequently, the purported grounds for dismissal based on loss of trust and confidence were not proven by substantial evidence. The Court found the sequence of events—being asked to leave for a Feng Shui reading, then being told to resign due to an aura mismatch—supported Loreta’s version. Since the dismissal was not for any just or authorized cause, it was illegal. Loreta was awarded full backwages, separation pay in lieu of reinstatement, moral and exemplary damages, and attorney’s fees.
