G.R. No. 94716 November 15, 1991
ASSOCIATION OF COURT OF APPEALS EMPLOYEES (ACAE), petitioner, vs. HON. PURA FERRER-CALLEJA, in her capacity as Director, Bureau of Labor Relations, and UNION OF CONCERNED EMPLOYEES OF THE COURT OF APPEALS (UCECA), respondents.

FACTS

The Union of Concerned Employees of the Court of Appeals (UCECA) filed a petition for certification election with the Bureau of Labor Relations (BLR), alleging that the incumbent bargaining representative, the Association of Court of Appeals Employees (ACAE), no longer enjoyed majority support. ACAE opposed, charging UCECA with fraud and misrepresentation in its membership list. Subsequently, ACAE filed a separate petition for the cancellation of UCECA’s certificate of registration on the same grounds and moved to defer the certification election pending resolution of the cancellation case.
The BLR denied the motion for deferment and ordered the holding of a certification election. ACAE filed a petition for certiorari and prohibition, challenging the BLR’s jurisdiction over judiciary employees and arguing that the pending cancellation petition barred the certification election. The Supreme Court issued a temporary restraining order.

ISSUE

The primary issues were: (1) whether the BLR had jurisdiction to order a certification election for employees of the Judiciary; and (2) whether a pending petition for cancellation of a union’s registration constitutes a bar to the holding of a certification election.

RULING

The Supreme Court dismissed the petition, affirming the BLR’s orders. On jurisdiction, the Court held that the constitutional right of government employees to self-organization is unequivocal. While Congress had yet to enact comprehensive legislation, existing rules, specifically Executive Order No. 180 and its implementing regulations, provided a procedure for certification elections among government employees. The BLR, as the agency tasked under these rules, properly exercised jurisdiction.
On the second issue, the Court ruled that a pending cancellation petition does not preclude a certification election. The legal personality of a union to file such a petition is presumed until its registration is formally cancelled. The policy of the law is to ensure employees’ freedom of choice and industrial peace by promptly determining their exclusive bargaining representative. Allowing a cancellation case to delay an election would subvert this constitutional and statutory objective. The Court found no grave abuse of discretion in the BLR’s decision to proceed with the election despite the pending cancellation case.