G.R. No. L-22723 April 30, 1970
CONFEDERATION OF UNIONS IN GOVERNMENT CORPORATIONS AND OFFICES (CUGCO) and GERONIMO Q. QUADRA, petitioners, vs. ABELARDO SUBIDO, Acting Commissioner of Civil Service, TOMAS P. MATIC, JR., Government Corporate Counsel, PEDRO M. GIMENEZ, Auditor General and PHILIPPINE CHARITY SWEEPSTAKES OFFICE (PCSO), respondents.

FACTS

The petitioners filed an original petition for prohibition to challenge Memorandum Circular No. 15, series of 1964, issued by respondent Acting Commissioner of Civil Service Abelardo Subido. The circular declared that personnel of the General Auditing Office and the legal staffs of all government-owned or controlled corporations performing proprietary functions are embraced in the Civil Service. It directed the Auditor General, the Government Corporate Counsel, and the heads of these corporations to require all union members employed in the Auditing and Legal Departments to sever their membership from the local employees’ unions and renounce all collective bargaining benefits, under penalty of disciplinary action including dismissal. The petitioners, CUGCO and its officer Geronimo Q. Quadra, argued that this directive violated their constitutional right to form associations. The circular was enforced by subsequent orders from the Auditor General and the Government Corporate Counsel, who also initiated administrative proceedings against Quadra for his union activities. The petitioners sought to prohibit these administrative actions.

ISSUE

Whether Memorandum Circular No. 15, which requires personnel in the auditing and legal departments of government corporations to leave their unions and renounce collective bargaining benefits, is constitutional and valid.

RULING

The Supreme Court denied the petition and dismissed the case. The Court upheld the validity of Memorandum Circular No. 15. It ruled that personnel in the auditing and legal staffs of government-owned or controlled corporations are under the administrative supervision of the Auditor General and the Government Corporate Counsel, respectively, and are embraced within the Civil Service. Citing its prior ruling in National Marketing Corporation vs. CIR, the Court emphasized that the independence and impartiality required for auditing functions necessitate that such employees be free from influence or benefits from the management they audit. The Court extended this same reasoning to the legal staffs. It further held that the right to form unions is not absolute, and employees in the civil service, particularly those in governmental functions like auditing and legal services, cannot resort to strikes, which are prohibited by law. Their acceptance of employment implies knowledge of these conditions.