GR 211638; (October, 2015) (Digest)
G.R. No. 211638, October 07, 2015
MARK ANTHONY SASO, PETITIONER, VS. 88 ACES MARITIME SERVICE, INC. AND/OR CARMENCITA A. SARREAL AND LIN WEN YU, RESPONDENTS.
FACTS
Petitioner Mark Anthony Saso was hired by respondent 88 Aces Maritime Services, Inc. for its principal, Lin Wen Yu, as a fisherman in Taiwan. On March 12, 2010, while hauling fish, a loaded fishnet and rope crashed into his right thigh, fracturing it. He underwent two surgeries in Taiwan and was repatriated on April 20, 2010. Upon arrival, he claimed respondents did not assist him and told him to shoulder medical expenses subject to reimbursement. He filed a complaint for disability benefits and other claims on August 3, 2010. The company-designated physician, Dr. Rafael Recto, examined him on July 1, 2010, and issued a medical bulletin on September 3, 2010, describing his condition but without a disability assessment. Saso consulted his own physician, Dr. Manuel Magtira, who on September 8, 2010, assessed him with a Grade 10 impediment, declaring him unfit for work. Respondents claimed Saso refused post-employment examination and that the company-designated physician later assessed an Impediment Grade 13. The Labor Arbiter awarded Saso permanent total disability benefits, citing his inability to work for over 120 days. The NLRC reversed, finding the complaint premature and that Saso failed to report within three days of repatriation. The Court of Appeals partially granted Saso’s petition, awarding sickness allowance and partial disability benefits but not permanent total disability, ruling the 120-day period did not apply as the company-designated physician issued an assessment within the 240-day period.
ISSUE
Whether petitioner Mark Anthony Saso is entitled to permanent total disability benefits.
RULING
No. The Supreme Court denied the petition and affirmed the Court of Appeals’ ruling. Saso is not entitled to permanent total disability benefits. The Court held that the 120-day period under the Labor Code and the POEA-SEC is not absolute. The company-designated physician issued a disability assessment (Impediment Grade 13) within the 240-day extended period allowed for treatment. Since a final assessment was provided within this period, the seafarer’s disability is classified based on that assessment, not on the mere lapse of 120 days. Saso’s failure to comply with the three-day post-repatriation reporting requirement was not fatal to his claim, but it did not automatically grant him permanent total disability. The award of sickness allowance for 120 days and partial disability benefits corresponding to Grade 13 was upheld.