GR 198423; (October, 2012) (Digest)
G.R. No. 198423; October 23, 2012
LEO A. GONZALES, Petitioner, vs. SOLID CEMENT CORPORATION and ALLEN QUERUBIN, Respondents.
FACTS
Petitioner Leo Gonzales was illegally dismissed by respondent Solid Cement Corporation. The Labor Arbiter’s December 12, 2000 decision, which became final and executory after Supreme Court affirmance, ordered his reinstatement with full backwages and benefits. Solid Cement placed Gonzales on payroll reinstatement starting January 22, 2001, but his actual physical reinstatement only occurred on July 15, 2008. During execution proceedings, Gonzales moved for an alias writ, claiming additional monetary benefits. The Labor Arbiter issued an execution order. The NLRC modified this order to include substantial additional awards for salary differentials, 13th month pay, and interest. The Court of Appeals, however, set aside the NLRC and reinstated the Labor Arbiter’s original computation. Gonzales’s petition for review to the Supreme Court was denied via Minute Resolutions, prompting this Second Motion for Reconsideration.
ISSUE
Whether the Court should grant the Second Motion for Reconsideration and modify the final execution order to include the monetary benefits awarded by the NLRC.
RULING
The Court, in an exceptional exercise of its equity jurisdiction, granted the motion in part. While a second motion for reconsideration is generally a prohibited pleading and the doctrine of immutability of final judgments bars modification, the Court recognized a compelling exception to prevent a grave miscarriage of justice. The core legal logic is that the execution of the final judgment in the main illegal dismissal case must fully effectuate its restorative purpose. The original decision mandated reinstatement with full backwages and benefits from the date of dismissal. The Court found that the CA erroneously excluded benefits integral to this full restitution.
Consequently, the Court partially granted the petition, vacating its prior Minute Resolutions. It directed payment of specific items that were rightful components of the final judgment: 13th month pay for 2000 and 2001, additional backwages for the period from dismissal until payroll reinstatement began, and 12% interest on the total award from finality until full payment. This corrective action ensures the illegally dismissed employee receives the complete monetary restoration intended by law, aligning the execution with the substantive decision’s mandate. The Labor Arbiter was ordered to issue a new writ incorporating these awards.