G.R. No. 188190; April 21, 2014
BARKO INTERNATIONAL, INC./CAPT. TEODORO B. QUIJANO AND/OR FUYO KAIUN CO. LTD., Petitioners, vs. EBERLY S. ALCAYNO, Respondent.

FACTS

Respondent Eberly S. Alcayno was employed as an Able-bodied Seaman by Fuyo Kaiun Co. Ltd. through its local manning agent, Barko International, Inc. (petitioners) on November 18, 2005, with a nine-month contract. He boarded the vessel M/V Cape Iris on December 1, 2005, after passing the Pre-Employment Medical Examination (PEME). After one month on board, he complained of a stiff neck and swelling of the right jaw. His condition worsened, leading to his sign-off on February 2, 2006, at the Suez Canal, Egypt, where he was diagnosed with a severe neck infection, uncontrolled diabetes mellitus, and possible malignancy. He was repatriated to the Philippines on February 8, 2006. The company-designated physician, Dr. Nicomedes G. Cruz, diagnosed him with uncontrolled diabetes mellitus and tuberculous adenitis and placed him under a six-month anti-tuberculosis treatment. On August 22, 2006, Dr. Cruz declared the respondent fit to work. However, the respondent had already filed a complaint on July 6, 2006, seeking disability benefits, alleging that his illness was contracted on board and that he was unable to work for more than 120 days, constituting permanent total disability. The Labor Arbiter granted his claim, but the NLRC reversed the decision, stating that the illness was not proven to be work-related and that the respondent failed to contest the company-designated physician’s assessment. The Court of Appeals reinstated the Labor Arbiter’s decision, ruling that the respondent’s inability to work for more than 120 days constituted permanent total disability.

ISSUE

Whether the respondent is entitled to permanent total disability benefits despite being declared fit to work by the company-designated physician within 240 days from repatriation.

RULING

Yes, the respondent is entitled to permanent total disability benefits. The Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Appeals’ decision, holding that under the prevailing jurisprudence at the time the complaint was filed (Crystal Shipping, Inc. v. Natividad), a seafarer’s inability to work for more than 120 days due to a work-related illness constitutes permanent total disability, regardless of a subsequent fitness-to-work declaration. The Court emphasized the principle of prospectivity, noting that the Vergara v. Hammonia Maritime Services, Inc. ruling (which required a fitness-to-work declaration within 240 days) was promulgated on October 6, 2008, after the respondent’s complaint was filed on July 6, 2006. Thus, Vergara could not retroactively apply to strip the respondent of his accrued cause of action. The Court also upheld the award of attorney’s fees, as the respondent was compelled to litigate to enforce his valid claim. The petition was denied, and the Court of Appeals’ decision was affirmed.