1. Art. 256. Representation issue in organized establishments.

In organized establishments, when a verified petition questioning the majority

status of the incumbent bargaining agent is filed before the Department of Labor and
Employment within the sixty-day period before the expiration of the collective
bargaining agreement, the Med-Arbiter shall automatically order an election by secret
ballot when the verified petition is supported by the written consent of at least twentyfive percent (25%) of all the employees in the bargaining unit to ascertain the will of the
employees in the appropriate bargaining unit. To have a valid election, at least a majority
of all eligible voters in the unit must have cast their votes. The labor union receiving the
majority of the valid votes cast shall be certified as the exclusive bargaining agent of all
the workers in the unit. When an election which provides for three or more choices
results in no choice receiving a majority of the valid votes cast, a run-off election shall be
conducted between the labor unions receiving the two highest number of votes: Provided,
that the total number of votes for all contending unions is at least fifty percent (50%) of
the number of votes cast.
At the expiration of the freedom period, the employer shall continue to recognize
the majority status of the incumbent bargaining agent where no petition for certification
election is filed. (As amended by Section 23, Republic Act No. 6715, March 21, 1989).

2.

Q: Can an employer file a petition for certification election? (ART. 258)

A: Yes, when requested to bargain collectively (Art. 258). But thereafter it should not be
allowed to have an active role in the CE; it shall merely act as a bystander.
CE proceeding is not a litigation, but a mere summary and non-litigious
proceeding. The only purpose is to ascertain the will of the parties in determining who
will be the bargaining agent.
Winning Union = majority of the valid votes cast, assuming that there is a valid election
Valid election - majority of eligible voters cast their votes
Consequences of selection of a bargaining agent - Employers duty to bargain
collectively

Art. 258. When an employer may file petition. When requested to bargain collectively,
an employer may petition the Bureau for an election. If there is no existing certified
collective bargaining agreement in the unit, the Bureau shall, after hearing, order a
certification election.
All certification cases shall be decided within twenty (20) working days.
The Bureau shall conduct a certification election within twenty (20) days in accordance
with the rules and regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Labor.

3. What is freedom period

a. It refers to the last sixty days immediately preceding the expiration of the fiveyear CBA. A petition for certification election may be filed during the freedom
period.

4. run-off election
Q: What is a run-off election?
A: An election conducted when:
1. A Certification Election which provides for three or more choices results in
none of the contending unions receiving a majority of the valid votes cast, and
2. There are no objections or challenges which if sustained can materially alter the
results, provided
3. The total number of votes for all the contending unions is at least 50% of the
number of votes cast. [Sec. 1, Rule X, Book V, IRR]
4. None of the choices obtained the majority of the valid votes cast (50% + 1
second majority);
5. The two choices which garnered the highest votes will be voted and the one
which garners the highest number of votes will be declared the winner provided
they get the majority votes of the total votes cast.

5. Collective bargaining agreement

Q: What is a collective bargaining agreement?
A: It is a contract executed upon request of either the Employer or the exclusive
bargaining representative of the Employees incorporating the agreement reached
after negotiations with respect to wages, hours of work, terms and conditions of
employment, including proposals for adjusting any grievance or questions under
the agreement.

Note: The certification of the CBA by the BLR is not required to make such
contract valid. Once it is duly entered into and signed by the parties, a CBA
becomes effective as between the parties whether or not it has been certified by
the BLR [Liberty Flour Mills Employees Association v. Liberty Flour Mills, G.R.
Nos. 58768-70, (1989)].

6. STRIKE
Q: What is a strike?
A: It means any temporary stoppage of work by the concerted action of Ees as a result of
an industrial or labor dispute. (Sec.1 [uu], Rule I, Book V, IRR)
The term strike shall comprise not only concerted work stoppages, but also
slowdowns, mass leaves, sitdowns, attempts to damage, destroy or sabotage plant
equipment and facilities and similar activities. Thus, the fact that the conventional term
strike was not used by the striking employees to describe their common course of
action is inconsequential, since the substance of the situation and not its appearance, will
be deemed to be controlling.
The right to strike, while constitutionally recognized, is not without legal
constrictions. Art. 264(a) of the LC, as amended, provides that no strike or lockout shall
be declared after assumption of jurisdiction by the President or the Secretary or after
certification or submission of the dispute to compulsory or voluntary arbitration or during
the pendency of cases involving the same grounds for the strike or lockout. The court has

consistently ruled that once the Secretary of Labor assumes jurisdiction over a labor
dispute, such jurisdiction should not be interfered with by the application of the coercive
processes of a strike or lockout. A strike that is undertaken despite the issuance by the
Secretary of Labor of an assumption order and/or certification is a prohibited activity and
thus illegal [Solidbank Corporation v. Ernesto U. Gamier/ Solid Bank Union, G.R. No.
159460, (Nov. 2010)].
Note: The fact that the conventional term strike was not used by the striking employees
to describe their common course of action is inconsequential, since the substance of the
situation and not its appearance will be deemed controllin [Toyota Motor Phils. Corp.
Workers Association v. NLRC, 537 SCRA 174 (2007)]. It shall comprise not only
concerted work stoppages, but also slowdowns, mass leaves, sit downs, attempt to
damage, destroy or sabotage plant equipment and facilities, and similar activities
[Samahang Manggagawa sa Sulpicion Lines v. Sulpicio Lines, Inc., G.R. No. 140992,
(2004)].

7. DEADLOCK BAR RULE, a petition for certification election can only be entertained if
there is no pending bargaining deadlock submitted to conciliation or arbitration or had
become the subject of a valid notice of strike or lockout.

8. Q: What are the factors considered in determining the appropriateness of a

bargaining unit?
A:
1. Will of the Employees (Globe Doctrine)
2. Affinity and unity of the Employees interest, such as substantial similarity of
work

and

duties,

or similarity of compensation and

working conditions

(Substantial Mutual Interest Doctrine / Community of Interest Rule)

3. Prior CB history (CB History Doctrine)
4. Similarity of employment status (Employment Status Doctrine)

Q: What is the Globe Doctrine?

A: In defining the appropriate bargaining unit, the determining factor is the desire of the
workers themselves.

Q: What is the Substantial Mutual Interest Doctrine?

A: The Employees sought to be represented by the CB agent must have substantial
mutual interest in terms of employment and working condition as evinced by the type of
work they perform [San Miguel Corp. Employees Union-PTGWO v. Confesor, 262 SCRA
81, (1996)].

Q: What is the Collective Bargaining History Doctrine?

A: In determining the appropriate bargaining unit, prior CB history and affinity of the
Employees may be resorted to.

Q: What is the Employment Status Doctrine?

A: The determination of the appropriate bargaining unit is based on the employment
status of the Employees.

Q: What are the factors considered in determining the Substantial Mutual Interest
Doctrine?
A:
1. Similarity in the scale and manner of determining earnings
2. Similarity in employment benefits, hours of work, and other terms and
conditions of employment
3. Similarity in the kinds of work performed
4. Similarity in the qualifications, skills and training of Employees
5. Frequency of contract or interchange among the Employees
6. Geographical proximity
7. Continuity and integration of production processes
8. Common supervision and determination of labor-relations policy

9. History of CB
10. Desires of the affected Employees or
11. Extent of union organization

9. May an employee be compelled to become a member of a labor organization?

Explain briefly?
A: Suggested Answer
An employee may not be compelled to become a member of a labor organization.
As employees have rights to form, join, and assist labor organizations, it follows
that they have the right not to form, join, and assist labor organization.

10. Are government employees entitled to unionize?

A: Suggested Answer
The right to unionize or to form organizations is explicitly recognized and granted
to employees in both the governmental and the private sectors. The Bill of Rights
provides that "(t)he right of the people, including those employed in the public
and private sectors, to form unions, associations or societies for purposes not
contrary to law shall not be abridged"
This guarantee is reiterated in the second paragraph of Section 3, Article XIII, on
Social Justice and Human Rights, which mandates that the State "shall guarantee
the

rights

of all workers

to

self-organization,

collective bargaining and

negotiations, and peaceful concerted activities, including the right to strike in

accordance with law ...."
Specifically with respect to government employees, the right to unionize is
recognized in Paragraph (5), Section 2, Article IX B which provides that "(t)he
right to self-organization shall not be denied to government employees."

11. CERTIFICATION ELECTION

Q: What is certification election?
A: It is the process of determining through secret ballot the sole and exclusive
representative of the Employees in an appropriate bargaining unit, for purposes of CB or
negotiation. [Sec. 1 (h), Rule I, Book V, IRR]
Note: The process is called CE because it serves as the official, reliable and democratic
basis for the BLR to determine and certify the union that shall be the exclusive
bargaining representative of the Employees for the purpose of bargaining with the
Employer.

Q: What is the nature of certification election?

A: A CE is not a litigation but merely an investigation of a non-adversarial fact-finding
character in which BLR plays a part of a disinterested investigator seeking merely to
ascertain the desire of the Employees as to the matter of their representation [Airline
Pilots Association of the Philippines v. CIR, G.R. No. L-33705, (1977)].

Q: What is the purpose of a certification election?

A: It is a means of determining the workers choice of:
1. Whether they want a union to represent them for CB or if they want no union to
represent them at all.
2. And if they choose to have a union to represent them, they will choose which among
the contending unions will be the sole and exclusive bargaining representative of the
Employees in the appropriate bargaining unit.

12. ARTICLE 252

Q: What is the meaning of the duty to bargain collectively?
A: The duty to bargain collectively means the performance of a mutual obligation to meet
and convene promptly and expeditiously in good faith for the purpose of negotiating an
agreement with respect to wages, hours of work and all other terms and conditions of
employment including proposals for adjusting any grievances or questions arising under

such agreement and executing a contract incorporating such agreements if requested by

either party but such duty does not compel any party to agree to a proposal or to make
any concession. (Art. 252, LC)
When there is a CBA, the duty to bargain collectively shall also mean that neither
party shall terminate nor modify such agreement during its lifetime. However, either
party can serve a written notice to terminate or modify the agreement at least 60 days
prior to its expiration date. It shall be the duty of both parties to keep the status quo and
to continue in full force and effect the terms and conditions of the existing agreement
during the 60-day period and/or until a new agreement is reached by the parties. [Art.
253, LC]

Q: What are the restrictions to the duty to bargain collectively?

A:
1. Such duty does not compel any party to agree to a proposal or to make any concession.
2. Parties cannot stipulate terms and conditions of employment which are below the
minimum requirements prescribed by law.

13. UNION

SECURITY

CLAUSES;

CLOSED

SHOP,

UNION

SHOP,

MAINTENANCE OF MEMBERSHIP SHOP, ETC.

Q: Define union security.

A: Union security is a generic term, which is applied to and comprehends closed
shop, union shop, maintenance of membership, or any other form of agreement
which imposes upon Employees the obligation to acquire or retain union membership as
a condition affecting employment.
Q: What is union security clause?
A: A stipulation in CBA whereby the management recognizes that the memberships of
Employees in the union which negotiated said agreement should be maintained and

continued as a condition for employment or retention of employment. The obvious

purpose is to safeguard and ensure the continued existence of the union.

Q: Define closed shop.

A: A closed shop may be defined as an enterprise in which, by agreement between the
Employer and his Employees or their representatives, no person may be employed in any
or certain agreed departments of the enterprise unless he or she is, becomes, and, for the
duration of the agreement, remains a member in good standing of a union entirely
comprised of or of which the Employees in interest are a part.

Q: Define union shop.

A: There is union shop when all new regular Employees are required to join the union
within a certain period as a condition for their continued employment.

14. JURISDICTION OF LABOR ARBITER

Q: What is the distinction between the jurisdiction of the labor arbiter and the National
Labor Relations Commission?
A:
1. The NLRC has exclusive appellate jurisdiction on all cases decided by the LA.
2. The NLRC does not have original jurisdiction on the cases over which the LA have
original and exclusive jurisdiction.
3. The NLRC cannot have appellate jurisdiction if a claim does not fall within the
exclusive original jurisdiction of the LA.

Q: What is the nature of jurisdiction of labor arbiters?

A: It is original and exclusive. LAs have no appellate jurisdiction.

Q: What are the cases falling under the jurisdiction of labor arbiters?

A: Exclusive and original jurisdiction to hear and decide the following cases involving all
workers:
1. ULP cases
2. Termination disputes
3. If accompanied with a claim for reinstatement, those that workers file involving wages,
rates of pay, hours of work and other terms and conditions of employment
4. Claims for actual, moral, exemplary and other forms of damages arising from Er-Ee
relations
5. Cases arising from any violation of Art. 264, LC including questions involving the
legality of strikes and lockouts except claims for Employment Compensation, Social
Security, Philhealth and maternity benefits, all other claims arising from Er-Ee relations,
including those of persons in domestic or household service, involving an amount
exceeding P5000 regardless of whether accompanied with a claim for reinstatement
6. Monetary claims of overseas contract workers arising from Er-Ee relations under the
Migrant Workers Act of 1995 as amended by RA 10022
7. Wage distortion disputes in unorganized establishments not voluntarily settled by the
parties pursuant to RA 6727
8. Enforcement of compromise agreements when there is non-compliance by any of the
parties pursuant to Art. 227 of the LC, as amended; and
9. Other cases as may be provided by law

Note: Although the provision speaks of exclusive and original jurisdiction of LAs, the
cases enumerated may instead be submitted to a voluntary arbitrator by agreement of the
parties under Art. 262 of the LC. The law prefers voluntary over compulsory arbitration.

Q: What is the nature of the cases which the labor arbiter may resolve?
A: The cases that an LA can hear and decide are employment related. Where no Er-Ee
relationship exists between the parties and no issue is involved which may be resolved by
reference to the LC, other labor statutes, or any CBA, it is the RTC that has jurisdiction
[Lapanday Agricultural Devt. Corp v. CA, G.R. No. 112139, (2000)].

The LA has jurisdiction over controversies involving Ers and Ees only if there is a
reasonable causal connection between the claim asserted and the Er-Ee relations. Absent
such link, the complaint is cognizable by the regular court. [Eviota v. CA, G.R. No. 152121,
(2003)]

Q: Do labor arbiters exercise concurrent jurisdiction with the NLRC?

A: Yes, with respect to contempt cases.

Q: What is the extent of the jurisdiction of the labor arbiter if there are unresolved
matters arising from the interpretation of the CBA?
A: GR: LAs have no jurisdiction over unresolved or unsettled grievances arising from the
interpretation or implementation of the CBA and those arising from the interpretation or
enforcement of company personnel policies.
XPN: Actual termination disputes

Note: Where the dispute is just in the interpretation, implementation or enforcement stage of
the termination, it may be referred to the grievance machinery set up by the CBA or by
voluntary arbitration. Where there was already actual termination, i.e., violation of rights, it
is already cognizable by the LA [Maneja v. NLRC, G.R. No. 124013, (1998)].

15. UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICES

Q: When are acts considered as Unfair Labor Practice?

A: The act complained of must have a proximate and causal connection with:
1. Exercise of the Right to Self-organization
2. Exercise of the Right to CB

Note: Not all illegal acts are ULP. Only those enumerated in the LC are ULP.

Q: What are the UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICES that may be committed by employers?
A:
1. Interference
2. Yellow dog condition
3. Contracting out
4. Company unionism
5. Discrimination for or against union membership
6. Discrimination because of testimony
7. Violation of duty to bargain
8. Paid negotiation
9. Gross violation of CBA

Q. UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICES OF LABOR ORGANIZATIONS

a. To restrain or coerce employees in the exercise of their right to self-organization.
However, a labor organization shall have the right to prescribe its own rules with respect
to the acquisition or retention of membership;
b. To cause or attempt to cause an employer to discriminate against an employee,
including discrimination
c. To violate the duly or refuse to bargain collectively with the employer provides that it
is the representative of the employees;
d. To cause or attempt to cause an employer to pay or deliver or agree to pay or deliver
any money or other things of value, in the nature of an exaction, for services which are
including the demand for a fee for union negotiations;
e. To ask for a accept negotiation or attorneys fees from employers as part of the
settlement of any issue in collective bargaining or any other dispute; or
f. To violate a collective bargaining agreement.

NOTE: Violation must be gross with respect to economic provisions of the CBA.

16. YELLOW DOG CONTRACT

Q: What is a yellow dog contract?

A: It is a promise exacted from workers as condition of employment that they are not to
belong to or attempts to foster a union during their period of employment.

Q: Is yellow dog contract valid?

A: No. It is null and void because:
1. It is contrary to public policy for it is tantamount to involuntary servitude.
2. It is entered into without consideration for Ees in waiving their right to selforganization.
3. Ees are coerced to sign contracts disadvantageous to their family.

Note: This is one of the cases of ULP that may be committed in the absence of an Er-Ee
relationship.

17. REGULAR EMPLOYMENT

Q: What is regular employment?

A:
1. An employment shall be deemed to be regular where the Ee has been engaged to
perform activities which are usually necessary or desirable in the usual business or trade
of the Er, theprovisions of written agreements to the contrary notwithstanding and
regardless of the oral agreements of the parties. (Sec. 5 [a], Rule I, Book VI, IRR)

2. Any Ee who has rendered at least one year of service, whether such service is
continuous or broken, shall be considered a regular Ee with respect to the activity in
which he is employed and his employment shall continue while such activity exists. (Sec.
5 [b], Rule I, Book VI, IRR)

Note: Regularization is not a management prerogative; rather, it is the nature of

employment that determines it. It is a mandate of the law. [PAL vs. Pascua,G.R. No.
143258, (2003)]
Regular employment does not mean permanent employment. A probationary Ee becomes
a regular Ee after 6 months. A regular Ee may only be terminated for just/authorized
causes.
The practice of entering into employment contracts which would prevent the workers
from becoming regular should be struck down as contrary to public policy and morals.
[Universal Robina Corp. vs. Catapang, G.R. No. 164736, (2005)]

Q: What is the test to determine Regular Employment?

A:
1. The primary standard of determining regular employment is the reasonable
connection between the particular activity performed by the Ee to the usual trade
or business of the Er. The test is whether the former is usually necessary or
desirable in the usual business or trade of the Er. [(De Leon vs. NLRC, G.R. No.
70705, ( 1989)]

Note: The connection can be determined by considering the nature of the work
performed and its relation to the scheme of the particular business or trade in its
entirety. [Highway Copra Traders vs. NLRC, G.R. No. 108889, (1998)]

2. Also, the performance of a job for at least a year is sufficient evidence of the
jobs necessity if not indispensability to the business. This is the rule even if its
performance is not continuous and merely intermittent. The employment is
considered regular, but only with respect to such activity and while such activity
exists [Universal Robina Corp. vs. Catapang, G.R. No. 164736, (2005)].

Note: The status of regular employment attaches to the casual Ee on the day immediately
after the end of his first year of service. The law does not provide the qualification that

the Ee must first be issued a regular appointment or must first be formally declared as
such before he can acquire a regular status [Aurora Land Projects Corp. vs. NLRC, G.R.
No. 114733,(1997)].

* TEMPORARY EMPLOYMENT-One wherein an employee is engaged to work on a

specific project or undertaking which is usually necessary or desirable in the usual
business or trade of the employer, the completion of which has been determined at the
time of the agreement of the employee.

- SEASONAL EMPLOYMENT -One wherein an employee is engaged to work during

a particular season on an activity that is usually necessary or desirable in the usual
business or trade of the employer.

- PROBATIONARY PERIOD OF EMPLOYMENT - the period needed to determine

the fitness for the job, i .e., the time needed to learn the job. It is period during which the
employer may determine if the employee is qualified for possible inclusion in the regular
force.

*NOTE: The standard which the probationary employee is to meet must be made known
by the employer to the employee at the time of the engagement.

*Probationary employees may be terminated for the same causes as a regular employee,
except that there is an additional ground failure to meet the standard. be for a period of
6 months?

No. Provided that the following requisites concur:

1. it is done before the lapse of 6 months;
2.employee must be advised of such extension;
3. employee must agree.

18. SECURITY OF TENURE

ART 279. SECURITY OF TENURE

SECURITY OF TENURE is the constitutional right granted the employee, that the
employer shall not terminate the services of an employee except for just cause or when
authorized by law.

An employee that has been dismissed illegally is entitled to:

a. Reinstatement
b. Backwages