Quiz

• Unfair Labor Practice (ULP)

  Act of an ER or union, or their agent, which violates the right of workers to SO, which includes the right to: Form a union, Take part in its formation, Join or assist a union of their own choosing for purposes of CB and negotations, Engage in peaceful concerted activities for mutual help and protection
• ULP

  • Inimical to the legitimate interests of both labor and management
  • Disrupts industrial peace
  • Hinders the promotion of a healthy and stable labor-management relations
  • Considered as CRIMINAL offense
  • 2 kinds: EMPLOYER ULP, UNION ULP
• CIVIL ASPECT of ULP

  • Claim for damages – moral, actual, exemplary, etc.
  • Attorney's fees
  • LAs shall give utmost priority to resolve ULP cases – within 30 calendar days from the time they are submitted for decision
• CRIMINAL ASPECT of ULP

  • There must be a finding that the ULP was committed
  • Filed within 1 year from the accrual of the ULP
  • Final judgment in the administrative proceeding shall not be binding in the criminal case nor be considered as evidence of guilt – PROOF OF COMPLIANCE only
• ULP

  • Those that are expressly enumerated in the Labor Code
  • GR: ULP can only be committed if there is a ER-EE relationship
  • EXCEPTION: yellow-dog contract
• ULP PENALTIES

  • FINE: not less than Php 1,000nor more than Php 10,000
  • Imprisoment of NOT LESS THAN 3 months nor MORE THAN 3 YEARS
  • BOTH at the discretion of the court
• CRIMINAL LIABILITY OF OFFICERS

  • Those who have actually participated in, authorized or ratified the ULP
  • Required evidence: SUBSTANTIAL – such relevant evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion
• ULP of Employers

  • To interfere with, restrain or coerce employees in the exercise of their right to self-organization
  • To require as a condition of employment that a person or an employee shall not join a labor organization or shall withdraw from one to which he belongs
  • To contract out services or functions being performed by union members when such will interfere with, restrain or coerce employees in the exercise of their right to self-organization
  • To initiate, dominate, assist or otherwise interfere with the formation or administration of any labor organization, including the giving of financial or other support to it or its organizers or supporters
  • To discriminate in regard to wages, hours of work and other terms and conditions of employment in order to encourage or discourage membership in any labor organization
  • To dismiss, discharge or otherwise prejudice or discriminate against an employee for having given or being about to give testimony under this Code
  • To violate the duty to bargain collectively as prescribed by this Code
  • To pay negotiation or attorney's fees to the union or its officers or agents as part of the settlement of any issue in collective bargaining or any other dispute
  • To violate a collective bargaining agreement
• ULP of Labor Organizations

  • To restrain or coerce employees in the exercise of their right to self-organization
  • To cause or attempt to cause an employer to discriminate against an employee, including discrimination against an employee with respect to whom membership in such organization has been denied or to terminate an employee on any ground other than the usual terms and conditions under which membership or continuation of membership is made available to other members
  • To violate the duty, or refuse to bargain collectively with the employer, provided it is the representative of the employees
  • 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 not performed or not to be performed, including the demand for fee for union negotiations
  • To ask for or accept negotiation or attorney's fees from employers as part of the settlement of any issue in collective bargaining or any other dispute
  • To violate a collective bargaining agreement
• Duty to Bargain Collectively

  • "TO BARGAIN COLLECTIVELY" – the performance of a mutual obligation to meet and confer promptly and expeditiously and in good faith for purposes of negotiating
  • Does not compel any party to agree to a proposal or to make any concessions
• Collective Bargaining

  • Continuing legal relationship – series of contract negotiations; implementation
  • Process of adjustment – mutual accommodation – negotiation
  • Contract of reasonable benefits - not below standards
  • Contract of relative equality – equal bargaining power
  • Agency of participatory democracy – participation in policy and decision-making processes with the management
• Collective Bargaining Process

  1. PRELIMINARY PROCESS - Serve written notice to other party with proposals

  2. PRELIMINARY PROCESS - Response and/or counter-proposals within 10 days

  3. NEGOTIATION - Request for conference in case of differences - conducted within 10 days

  4. EXECUTION - CBA signing

  5. PUBLICATION - Posting of a copy in at least 2 conspicuous places

  6. Ratification by majority of bargaining unit

  7. Registration - 5 copies to BLR or DOLE-RO, payment of fees

  8. Administration - jointly by ER and bargaining agent

  9. Interpretation and enforcement
• Usual contents of a CBA

  • Preamble - prologue or intro
  • Union recognition
  • Union security clause
  • Grievance machinery and voluntary arbitration
  • Union check off
  • No strike, no lockout
  • Waiver
  • Management prerogatives - right to promote,transfer lay off, discipline, terminate
  • Union prerogatives - Right to discipline
  • Hours of work
  • Scales of wages
  • Promotions
  • Leave of absences - other forms of leave
  • Family planning
  • Labor education
  • Escalator clause - gradual increase of wages in the event of sudden increase in prices
  • Drug-free provision - union to police its own rank
  • Effectivity clause
• Effectivity clause representation

  5 years
• Effectivity clause economic


  3 years
• Boulwareism

  • Bargaining technique of "fair and firm offer" and "take it or leave it"
  • Violative of good faith bargaining - ULP
• Although a CBA expired, it SHALL CONTINUE to have legal effects until a new CBA shall have been validly executed - STATUS QUO
• If the new CBA is concluded within 6 months from the expiration - retro to the day immediately after the expiration (retroactive effect of CBAs)
• If beyond 6 months - subject to agreement/negotiation
• Deadlock in bargaining


  Impasse or standstill, presupposes good faith bargaining but to no avail
• Remedies for deadlock


  • NCMB to intervene
  • Voluntary arbitration
  • Strike or lockout
• Sole and exclusive bargaining agent - recognized as such for the duration of the CBA
• Mutuality


  The relationship between a union and its members
• Terms and conditions

  Set forth in the union constitution and by-laws
• Agency


  The relationship between a union and its members
• Rights of union members

  • Against arbitrary or excessive initiation fees, fines and forfeitures
  • To full and detailed financial reports
  • To directly elect union officers by secret ballot
  • To take part in determining and voting upon major questions of policy such as declaring strike
  • Against admission of subversives
  • Against appointment or election of certain persons
  • Against unauthorized collection of fees or disbursement of funds
  • To demand receipt for payment of fees, dues or other contributions
  • Against unauthorized compensation to union officers
  • Of inspection of books of accounts and other financial records of the union
  • Against unreasonable assessments or other extraordinary fees
  • Against check-off for special assessment or any other extraordinary fees
  • To be informed on matters affecting constitution and by-laws, CBA, labor relations systems
  • To run for union office
  • To due process on matters of discipline
• Union officers


  • Employee of the company where the union is operating
  • Member of the union in good standing
  • Must not have been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude, unless given a pardon for the same
• Election of union officers

  1. Directly elected by the union members

  2. By secret balloting

  3. Intervals of 5 years

  4. Election protest - Med-Arbiter w/in 5 days from the close of election process; resolved in 20 days
• Expulsion of union officers


  1. For erring officers

  2. Grounds: failure to provide mandatory labor education and research services to members, misuse or illegal disbursements, irregularities in the approval of resolutions, unauthorized compensation, membership in another labor union, culpable violation of the constitution and by-laws
• Check-off


  Method of deducting from an employee's pay at prescribed period, the amounts due the union for fees, fines or assessments for purposes of raising revenues
• Check-off may be voluntary or part of a union agreement as part of the CBA
• Managerial employees


  Vested with power or prerogatives to lay down and execute management polices and/or to hire, transfer, suspend, lay-off, recall, discharge, assign or discipline employees
• Supervisory employees


  One who, in the interest of the employer, effectively recommends managerial actions if the exercise of which is not merely routinary or clerical in nature but requires the use of independent judgment
• Managerial and supervisory employees are ineligible to join any labor organization
• Right to self-organization in the public/government sector


  Purposes: collective negotiations - CNA, furtherance and protection of interest, improvement of public service delivery
• Government employees ineligible for self-organization


  • High level, highly confidential and co-terminous employees
  • Members of the AFP
  • Members of PNP
  • Firemen/women
  • Jail guards
• What can be negotiated in the public/government sector

  • Schedule of VL and other leave benefits
  • Personnel growth and development
  • Communication system
  • Work assignment/reassignment/detail/transfer
  • Distribution of workload
  • Provision of protection and safety
  • Provision for facilities for PWD personnel
  • Provision for first aid medical services and supplies
  • Physical fitness pogram
  • Family planning services
  • APE
  • Recreation, social, athletic, cultural actvities
  • CNA incentive
• What CANNOT be negotiated in the public/government sector

  • Terms and conditions fixed by law
  • Matters that require appropriation of funds
  • Salary and allowances
  • Capital outlays
  • Provident funds
  • Hospitalization
  • Travel expenses
  • Rice, sugar and other subsidies
  • Increase in retirement benefits
  • Matters involving exercise of management prerogatives
  • Appointment, promotion, assignment or detail
  • Reclassification/upgrading of position, compensation structure
  • Disciplinary actions