ARTICLE 119. False reporting.

It shall be unlawful for any person to make any statement, report, or record filed or kept pursuant to the provisions of this Code knowing such statement, report or record to be false in any material respect.

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Feb 21

13th Month Pay Law

Employee Wages and Benefits 2010-02-21 Presidential Decree No. 851 (otherwise known as Thirteenth Month Pay Law), as amended by Memorandum Order No. 28, requires all employers to pay their employees a 13th month pay not later than December 24 of every year. Historical Backdrop. Originally, when PD 851, issued by Pres. Marcos, took effect on December 16, 1975, only employees receiving a basic salary of not more than P1,000 a month was entitled to 13th pay. On August 13, 1986, Pres. Aquino, through Memorandum Order No. 28, removed the salary ceiling of P1,000. With the removal of the salary ceiling, all rank and file employees become entitled to a 13th month pay regardless of the amount of their monthly basic salary (unless their employers are exempted from the application of PD 851). Employees Covered by 13th Month Pay Law. All rank-and-file employees, regardless of their designation or employment status, and irrespective of the method by which their wages are paid, who have worked at least one month during the calendar year are entitled to 13th month pay.

Rank and File Employees Meaning.

As stated above, only rank-and-file employees are entitled to 13th month pay. Managerial employees are excluded from the coverage of the law. The Labor Code distinguishes a rank-and-file employee from a managerial employee. It provides that a managerial employee is one who is vested with powers of prerogatives to lay down and execute management policies and/or to hire, transfer, suspend, lay-off, recall discharge, assign or discipline employees, or to effectively recommend such managerial actions. All employees not falling within this definition are considered rank-and-file employees. Amount of 13th Month Pay. The 13th month pay shall be in the amount not less than 1/12 of the total basic salary earned by the employee within the calendar year. Philippine Labor Law and Jurisprudence 5. APPEALS FROM DECISIONS OF LABOR ARBITERS. Decisions, awards, or orders of Labor Arbiters are final and executory unless appealed to the NLRC by any or both parties within ten calendar days--not working days--from receipt of notice thereof. No petition for extension shall be entertained. (Rizal Empire Insurance vs. NLRC, 150 SCRA 565) The ten calendar-day period for appeal of a decision by a Labor Arbiter is not only mandatory but jurisdictional. Failure to appeal within this period has the effect of rendering the judgment fmal and executory (Narag vs. NLRC, 155 SCRA 199) An exception to this rule is when the tenth day is a Sunday or legal holiday, such that appeal can be filed on the next business day, but not when a legal holiday falls within the period. (SM Agricultural and General Machineries vs. NLRC, 169 SCRA 20). The NLRC has exclusive appellate jurisdiction over all cases decided by Labor Arbiters (Art. 217-b, LC). This means that the NLRC does not have original jurisdiction over the cases enumerated in Art.2 17-a and that if a claim does not fall within the exclusive original jurisdiction of the Labor Arbiter, the NLRC cannot have appellate jurisdiction thereon. (Pondoc vs. NLRC, 262 SCRA 632). Appeals of such cases may be entertained only on any of the following grounds: (a) prima facie evidence of abuse of discretion on the part of the Labor Arbiter, (b) if the decision, order or award was secured through fraud or coercion, including graft and corruption; (c) if made purely on questions of law; and (d) if serious errors in the findings of fact are raised which would cause grave or irreparable damage or injury to the appellant (Art. 223, LC). To discourage frivolous or dilatory appeals, the Labor Arbiter or the NLRC may impose reasonable penalties, including fines or censures, upon the erring parties. Appeals shall be filed within, the reglementary period, under oath, with

proof of payment of the required appeal fee, and the posting of a cash or surety bond if the decision involves a monetary award, accompanied by of appeal staling the grounds relied upon and arguments therefore, the relief prayed for, and a statement of the receipt date and proof of service on the other party of such appeal. A mere notice of appeal without the other requisites will not stop the running of the period for perfecting an appeal. However, failure to furnish a copy of the memorandum of appeal to the other party, and to pay the docketing fee within the reglementary period are not jurisdictional defects, but merely formal lapses of procedure. (C.W. Tan Manufacturing vs, NLRC, 170 SCRA 240). The appellate may file with the arbitration branch of the Regional Office where the appeal was filed, his answer or reply to the appellant's memorandum of appeal not later than ten calendar days from receipt thereof. Otherwise, it may be construed as a waiver on his part to file the same. Once the appeal is duly perfected, the NLRC may review and decide the appeal, limiting itself to the specific issues raised thereon. Issues not raised before the Labor Arbiter cannot be raised for the first time on appeal (Sadol vs. Pilipinas Kao, supra) When conclusions of the LaborArbiter are sufficiently corroborated by the evidence on record, the same should be respected by appellate tribunals since he is in a better position to assess and evaluate the credibility of the contending parties. (RT. and T. Corp. vs. NLRC, 183 SCRA451). In one case, it was held that although the decision on the merits has become final and executory, and no longer appeasable, another appeal may be allowed on the manner of its execution: as when a recompilation of the money claim results in a considerably greater amount, because the decision must be enforced in accordance with its terms and conditions. Any deviation therefrom can be the subject of a proper appeal. (Abbott vs. NLRC. 145 SCRA 206) 6. PROCEEDINGS BEFORE THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS COMMISSION. In any proceeding before the NLRC, the parties may be represented by legal counsel, but the Chairman or any presiding Commissioner exercises complete control of the proceedings at all stages. The New Rules of Procedure of the NLRC prohibit parties from making new allegations or causes of action not included in the complaint or position papers, affidavits, and other documents. (Magnolia Corp. vs. NLRC, 250 SCRA 332). The NLRC shall resolve appeals within 20 calendar days from receipt of the answer of the appellate, or upon fling of the last pleading or memorandum required. Accordingly, a case or motion is deemed submitted for resolution upon the filing of the last pleading or memorandum required. Although perfection of an appeal within the reglementary period is jurisdictional, the NLRC may relax the application of this rule to prevent a miscarriage of justice, for instance to forestall the grant of separation pay twice. ( Olacao, et. al. vs. NLRC, 177 SCRA 38). Decisions and resolutions of the NLRC shall state clearly and distinctly the

findings facts, issues and conclusions of law on which it is based and the relief granted, if any. If a decision or resolution involves monetary awards, the same shall contain the specific amount awarded as of the date the decision is rendered. If the NLRC is in a position to resolve factual issues on the basis of original and documentary evidence before it, the remand of a case for further proceedings is unnecessary if not dilatory. (Nagkakaisang Manggagawa sa Sony vs. NLRC, 272 SCRA2O9). On the other hand, a petition fo1 injunction filed directly with the NLRC, seeking to prohibit an employer from dismissing petitioner employees. cannot be entertained in the absence of a labor dispute between the contending parties before the LaborArbiter. The jurisdiction of the NLRC in illegal dismissal cases is appellate in nature, and may only be invoked after a case of illegal dismissal has been heard by the LatkrArbiter. Art. 218 of the Labor Code does not give the NLRC blanket authority to issue an injunction which is merely a secondary remedy in labor disputes, and is issued only in cases of extreme necessity and when conciliation efforts have been exhausted. (PAL vs. NLRC Ct al. March 20, 1998). Decisions, and resolutions and orders of the Commission or any of its divisions shall become executory after ten calendar days from receipt of the same. Motions for reconsideration of any order, resolution or decision shall not be entertained except when based on palpable or patent errors, subject to the following requirements: (a) the motion is under oath, (b) it is filed within ten calendar days from receipt of the order, resolution or decision, with proof of service of copy to the adverse party, and (c) that only one such motion from the same party shall be entertained. Should such a motion be given due course, the decision becomes executory after ten calendar days from receipt of the resolution on such motion (Rule VII, Sec. 4, Rule Vigil, Sec. 2-b, New Rules of Procedure; Pure foods Corp. vs. NLRC, 171 SCRA 415). 7. REVISED RULES OF APPEAL FROM NLRC DECISIONS. In the landmark case of St. Martin Funeral Home vs. NLRC and Aricayos decided on Sept. 16, 1998, the Supreme Court issued a ruling that effectively revised the procedure of appeals from decisions of the NLRC. In its decision, the High Court cited the provision of the Judiciary Reorganization Act of 1980 (Sec. 9 BP No. 129), as amended by Rep. Act 7902 deleting the exclusion of the Labor Code from the jurisdiction of the Court of Appeals, and granting that Court limited powers to conduct trials and hearings in cases within its jurisdiction. This exclusion of the Labor Code was reworded into "except those falling within the appellate jurisdiction of the Supreme Coup in accordance with the Constitution, the Labor Code x x x" But the High Court pointed out that there are no cases in the Labor Code wherein the decisions are within the appellate jurisdiction of the Supreme Court, or of any court for that matter. It also noted, upon a review of the pertinent legislative records, that it was the intendment of Congress to reduce the workload of the Supreme Court without depriving litigants of the privilege of review by an appellate tribunal. Accordingly, the Supreme Court held that all references in the amended Sec. 9ofBP 129 to supposed appeals (the term was described as a "lapsus plumage"- a slip of the pen) from the NLRC to the Supreme Court should be interpreted and declared to mean and refer to petitions for certiorari under Rule 65, RC. It mentioned, In passing, that the special civil action of certiorari is within the concurrent original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeals. Thus, the Supreme Court

ordered that all such petitions should henceforth be initially filed in the Court of Appeals, In strict observance of the doctrine on the hierarchy of courts as the appropriate forum for the relief desired. (St. Martin Funeral Homes vs.NLRC, 295 SCRA 494). The above-cited doctrine on hierarchy of courts means that a litigant cannot seek relief directly from the Supreme Court where the same is available in the lower courts in the exercise of their original or concurrent jurisdiction, or is even mandated by law to be sought therein. (Santiago vs. Vasquez et al, 278 SCRA 155) While this corrected procedure adds another level to the resolution of labor disputes, the Supreme Court noted that it offers litigants the advantage to have all the evidence on record reexamined and reweighed by a factfinding Court with its increased component divisions, and correspondingly affirmed, modified or reversed. For its part, the NLRC has since stressed recourse to the voluntary modes of resolving labor disputes, including mediation and conciliation, to ensure expeditious action in labor cases, and to give meaning to the express constitutional preference for the use of voluntary modes in settling industrial disputes (Art. XIII, Sec. 3, Const.) PROCEEDINGS IN VOLUNTARY ARBITRATION. The Military Arbitrator or panel of Voluntary Arbitrators has the power to hold hearings, receive evidences and take whatever action is necessary to resolve the issue or issues subject of the dispute, including efforts to effect a voluntary settlement between the parties. All parties to the dispute are entitled to attend the arbitration proceedings. The attendance of any third party or the exclusion of any witness from the proceedings shall be determined by the Voluntary Arbitrator or panel. Hearings may be adjourned for cause or upon agreement by the parties. Unless the parties agree otherwise, it is mandatory for the Voluntary Arbitrator or Arbitration panel to render an award or decision within 20 calendar days from the date of submission of the dispute to voluntary arbitration.