UNITED PHILIPPINE LINES, INC., PETITIONER, VS. HON. ARSENIO I. MARTINEZ, EMILIANO C. TABIGNE, AND AMANDO C. BUGAYONG, JUDGES OF THE COURT OF INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS AND UNITED STEE…

A petition for certiorari by way of review by United
Philippine Lines, Inc. to nullify an order of the defunct Court of Industrial
Relations certifying private respondent United Steel
Workers Association of the Philippines
as the sole and exclusive bargaining agent, was filed with this Court on the ground of its arbitrariness,
there being a complete disregard of material facts and documents which would
show that the workers involved were employees of an independent
contractor.  After the
petition was given due course, the brief for petitioner was duly filed.  Respondents did not submit any pleading.  The period that had lapsed led this Tribunal
to issue a resolution requiring the parties to inform the Court as to whether
the petition has become moot and academic.

A manifestation was duly filed by petitioner, the first paragraph
of which stated that it “is still in the overseas shipping business and
still operates one vessel,” but the second paragraph admitted that it
“no longer operates the vessels involved in the case at the relevant time,
[although it] has plans of acquiring, either by purchase or charter, other
vessels in the future which may require the services of tank cleaners; * *
*.”^[1]
Such admission possesses relevance.  When
coupled with the manifest lack of interest of private respondent United Steel
Workers Association of the Philippines, which until now has not been heard
from, even petitioner merely assuming it has continued as such when its silence
and inactivity could indicate the contrary, this Court does not see any
necessity for resolving the issue raised. 
The fear of petitioner that private respondent would still be considered
“as the sole exclusive bargaining agent” would seem to be
illusory.  What other conclusion can
there be in the light of its own admission “that the vessels involved in
the case are no longer operated by it.” Moreover, no prejudice had been
sustained by petitioner as there was a stay of the execution of the order
complained of upon petitioner posting a bond of P1,000.00.  It may further be noted that the question of
certification, if it would arise subsequently, would be governed by the present
Labor Code.

WHEREFORE, this petition is dismissed for being moot and
academic.

Barredo, Antonio, Aquino,
and Concepcion,
Jr., JJ.,
concur.

Santos and Abad Santos, JJ., on official leave.

^[1]
Manifestation, 1.