This case has been cited 1 times or more.
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2016-01-13 |
CARPIO, J. |
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| This case is different from the Chris Garments case cited by the NLRC where the Court held that the matter of employer-employee relationship has been resolved with finality by the DOLE Secretary, whose factual findings were not appealed by the losing party. As mentioned earlier, the Med-Arbiter's order in this case dismissing the petition for certification election on the basis of non-existence of employer-employee relationship was issued after the members of the respondent union were dismissed from their employment. The purpose of a petition for certification election is to determine which organization will represent the employees in their collective bargaining with the employer.[12] The respondent union, without its member-employees, was thus stripped of its personality to challenge the Med-Arbiter's decision in the certification election case. Thus, the members of the respondent union were left with no option but to pursue their illegal dismissal case filed before the Labor Arbiter. To dismiss the illegal dismissal case filed before the Labor Arbiter on the basis of the pronouncement of the Med-Arbiter in the certification election case that there was no employer-employee relationship between the parties, which the respondent union could not even appeal to the DOLE Secretary because of the dismissal of its members, would be tantamount to denying due process to the complainants in the illegal dismissal case. This, we cannot allow. | |||||