TAIHEI COMPANY LTD. AND MARITIME FACTORS, INC., PETITIONERS, VS. THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS COMMISSION, THE PHILIPPINE OVERSEAS EMPLOYMENT ADMINISTRATION AND RODOLFO E. GRAMPA…

This petition against the resolution of the NLRC dated December 2, 1985, was dismissed by the Court for failure
to show that the public respondent
had acted with grave abuse of discretion.^[1]
On the petitioner’s motion for reconsideration, we eventually gave due course
to the petition and required the parties to submit simultaneously their
respective memoranda.^[2]
After re-examining the issues and the arguments of the petitioner and the
respondents in the light of the pertinent record, we find no reason to grant
the reconsideration sought or to reverse our original dismissal of this case.

The issues raised are essentially factual and therefore within
the competence of the NLRC and the POEA to assess and resolve, subject
to review and reversal by this Court only if the findings thereon are tainted
with arbitrariness.  The reason is that
this Court is not a trier
of facts and must ordinarily rely for the determination thereof on the proceedings below.  As the resolution by the public respondent of
the factual issues in the case at bar has not been demonstrated to be flawed,
it must be affirmed.

As found by the POEA, private respondent Rodolfo Grampa was hired by Taihei Company, Ltd., the herein
petitioner, as a Group A Chief Engineer for its vessel, the Yanbu-16.  His contract was for 18 months with a monthly
salary of US$800 plus a fixed monthly overtime pay of US$300.^[3] The Crew Agreement signed by the
parties included the following provision:

(c) all claims,
complaints or controversies relative to this Contract shall be exclusively resolved through the established grievance procedure, the
National Seamen Board; and the Philippine Court of Justice, in that order.

The term of the contract began on October 15, 1983, when Grampa
left for Saudi Arabia
to assume his duties.  It was terminated
on April 7, 1984, when he
received a notice of his dismissal from Operations Manager Ko
Sasaki of the petitioner company for various offenses enumerated in the notice.^[4]

The offenses included insubordination, disrespect, disobedience,
laziness, incompetence, gross misbehavior, and poor personal relations with his
co-workers, among other shortcomings. 
The dismissal was based on several reports of Grampa’s
superiors and complaints filed by his crew-mates, some of whom threatened to
resign if he was not replaced or transferred.^[5]

Grampa refuted the charges against him
in his letter to Sasaki dated April
11, 1984,^[6]
but he was nevertheless repatriated on April
21, 1984, after working for only 6 months and 6 days for the
petitioner.

Upon his return to
the Philippines,
he filed a complaint for illegal dismissal against the petitioner, which filed
its own complaint for his expatriation expenses and for attorney’s fees.  The two cases were consolidated.

After considering the position papers submitted by the parties,
the POEA held in favor of the complainant and awarded him damages in “the
amount of US$12,440.14, or its equivalent in Philippine currency at the
prevailing foreign exchange rate of payment, representing unearned salaries
corresponding to the unexpired portion of the employment contract.”^[7]
On appeal, this decision was affirmed in toto
by the NLRC in its resolution dated December
2, 1985.^[8]

We also affirm.

We find, in the first place, that the ruling of the POEA and the
NLRC regarding the illegality of the manner of Grampa’s
dismissal cannot be faulted.  It is not
denied that the petitioner has not complied with the above-quoted provision in
the Crew Agreement nor has it proved that there was any kind of formal
investigation of the charges against Grampa or at
least a report of such
investigation.

Independently of such stipulation, there were also the pertinent
provisions in our labor laws that were equally disregarded by the
petitioner.  The procedure for terminating
employment is set forth in the rules implementing BP 130 as follows:

Sec. 2.  Notice of
Dismissal.  – Any employee who seeks
to dismiss a worker shall furnish him a written notice stating the particular
acts or omission constituting the grounds for his dismissal.  In cases of abandonment of work, the notice
shall be served at the worker’s last known address.

Sec. 5.  Answer and
Hearing.  – The worker may answer the
allegations stated against him in the notice of dismissal within a reasonable
period from receipt of such notice.  The
employer shall afford the worker ample opportunity to be heard and to defend
himself with the assistance of his representative if he so desires.

Sec. 6.  Decision to
dismiss.  – The employer shall
immediately notify a worker in writing of a decision to dismiss him stating
clearly the reasons therefor.

The petitioner stresses that Grampa was
duly notified of the charges against him in the letter dated January 29, 1984, of Captain James Milhench, Chief Superintendent,^[9]
and that it was only on April 11, 1984,
that the private respondent submitted his explanation to Mr. Sasaki.  There is no indication on the face of the
letter of the date it was received by the private respondent and of the period
within which he should answer the charges.

We may suppose from the composition and grammar of his letter
that it took Grampa some difficulty to write it, let
alone the fact that he apparently had no one to consult or help him, much less
a counsel to advise him at that time.  At
any rate, it is clear that Grampa was not given an
opportunity to be heard and that, on the contrary, it was simply assumed, as
the letter threatened, that his silence was an admission of his guilt.  The record shows that the decision to dismiss
him had already been reached on April
4, 1984, as the action memo of that date shows,^[10]
before Grampa’s explanation was received.

Considering the factual nature of the charges against Grampa, the least the petitioner could have done was to
remind him of the need to submit his explanation before unilaterally
pronouncing his guilt.  The long
explanation he made clearly showed that the charges required no less than a formal investigation where he could
confront the witness against him and refute
their accusations face to face.

The petitioner now argues that even if Grampa
was not allowed such formal investigation before his dismissal, the defect was
cured when he was allowed the opportunity to be heard in the proceedings before
the POEA and the NLRC.  In Wenphil Corporation v. NLRC,^[11]
this Court still held the employer liable for dismissing the employee without a
formal investigation although the employee was not denied due process in the
proceedings held later before the labor arbiter and the NLRC.  The subsequent compliance with procedural due
process did not wipe out the defect of its earlier denial by the employer.

Concerning the grounds for Grampa’s
dismissal, we find that the assessment thereof by the POEA and the NLRC was
based on the copious evidence submitted by the parties and on their arguments
in their position papers.  We agree with
the observation that the petitioner should not have taken 6 months to dismiss
the private respondent if his services were really unsatisfactory.  That delay could have been justified if a
formal investigation was being held in the meantime, but no such investigation
was made at all.  The petitioner would
have acted more swiftly if indeed Grampa’s
“continued presence on board (would) endanger the machinery under his
control and adversely affect the work of other crew members.”^[12]

The circumstance that the charges were made by the petitioner’s
employees also casts some doubt on their credibility although it is conceded
that such complaints could not have come except only from them.  In the nature of things, we think it is not
unlikely for an employee to defer to the requests of his employer to testify in
its favor, if only to protect his own employment, if not actually to improve
it.

That is why we find especially noteworthy the certification made
by Capt. Gemidel D. Ibabao,
Grampa’s immediate superior, attesting that the
private respondent was a “hardworker, sincere to
his duties and is able to
maintain a harmonious relationship with his co-workers.”^[13]
This was handwritten and dated April
11, 1984.  While it is true
that he was one of those who signed the petition to dismiss Grampa
on April 15, 1984,^[14]
Ibabao retracted this on May 2, 1984, and reiterated his original certification.^[15]
This stance of Ibabao’s appears to be more credible
because it was made against the interests of the petitioner at risk of his own
employment.

In striking contrast to the complaints against Grampa are the testimonials of his qualifications submitted
by disinterested persons who did not have to be in the good graces of the
petitioner.^[16]
The fact that they referred to his services before his employment with the
petitioner company did not mean that he had changed suddenly and drastically to
become the odious person the petitioner would portray him to be.  If Grampa had
indeed acted differently later, the cause might have come from the conditions
of his new employment and the treatment he received from his superiors and
co-workers.

We have carefully considered the decision of then POEA Administrator
Patricia A. Sto. Tomas (who has since been promoted
to Chairman of the Civil Service Commission) and find that her evaluation of
the evidence submitted in this case is not tainted with grave abuse of
discretion.  On the contrary, it is quite
judicious.  In a petition for certiorari
under Rule 65 of the Rules of Court, the factual findings in the challenged
decision are conclusive on this Court except
only where it is clearly shown that they were arrived at arbitrarily or in disregard of the evidence on record.  As there is no such showing here, the
proceedings below must be sustained.

WHEREFORE, the motion for reconsideration is DENIED with
finality and the challenged resolution of the NLRC dated December 2, 1985, is
again AFFIRMED, with costs against the petitioner.  It is so ordered.

Narvasa, (Chairman), Gancayco, Griño-Aquino, and Medialdea, JJ., concur.

^[1]
Rollo, p. 87.

^[2]
Ibid., p. 142.

^[3]
Annex A, Original Records, p. 621.

^[4]
Original Records, p. 649.

^[5]
Report of disrespect and insubordination made by Capt. Romeo Llander, the company’s nautical superintendent, dated Jan.
7, 1984, and reiterated on April 3, 1984 (Rollo,
pp. 23-24; 32-33); complaints for inefficiency and disobedience submitted by
Chief Engr. Grajo dated
Jan. 7 & 23, 1984 (Ibid., pp. 25, 26-27); letters submitted
by Chief Engineer Cesar Montes dated March 6, 1984 and April 1, 1984, attesting
to Grampa’s misbehavior and incompatibility with his
co-workers (Rollo, p. 29 & 31); March 22,
1984, report by Oiler Tirso
Somoza, Jr. of Grampa’s non-cooperation with his
co-workers (Rollo, p. 30).

^[6]
Ibid., pp. 84-86.

^[7]
Id., pp. 36-42.

^[8]
id., pp. 44-51.

^[9]
id., p. 28.

^[10]
id., p. 34.

^[11]
170 SCRA 69.

^[12]
Action Memo, Rollo, p. 34.

^[13]
Original Records, p. 640.

^[14]
Rollo, p. 35.

^[15]
Original Records, p. 639.

^[16]
Certification issued by E. Smith, Superintendent Engineer of Lamnalco Ltd. (Saudi
Arabia) attesting to the superior conduct
and ability of Grampa as an Engineer during his
employment from Feb. 12, 1980, to Sept. 28, 1980 (Original Records, p. 653); letter issued by Lorna Reyes,
President of E.L.S. Reyes Enterprises, shipping agent of M.V. Daphnenar, vouching for Grampa’s
good performance as a third
engineer during his employment from Nov. 28, 1980 to April 28, 1980 (Original
Records, p. 652); confirmations made by W.M. Morris, operations manager of Gulf
Marine Services and Florida Galang, its personnel
officer, warranting that as a chief engineer in RIAH 3402 and in Jack Up Barge
NAASH 4302 from August 25, 1981, to Feb. 25, 1982, and April 23, 1982 and Sept.
1, 1982, respectively, Grampa’s performance was
satisfactory (Original Records, pp. 650 & 651).