Dear Atty. Angela,

I have been working as a probationary employee driver for four months now in a retail company. I was told that after six months, our boss will inform me if I will be regularized. A few days ago, I called in sick and since I got high fever, I couldn't go to work for two days. The boss got very mad and told me he doesn't need my service and not to go back for work anymore. I was shocked and couldn't believe I lost my job when I had a valid excuse for my absence. Can he just dismiss me like that? Please help.

Baste

Dear Baste,

The act of your boss constitutes illegal dismissal. Despite being a probationary employee, it does not justify a summary dismissal and you deserve to be treated fairly by giving you an opportunity to explain.

A probationary employee, like a regular employee, enjoys security of tenure. In cases of probationary employment, termination of service can only be justified through just or authorized causes and termination due to failure to qualify as a regular employee in accordance with the reasonable standards. Thus, the services of an employee who has been engaged on probationary basis may be terminated for any of the following: (a) a just or (b) an authorized cause; and (c) when he fails to qualify as a regular employee in accordance with reasonable standards prescribed by the employer (Abbott Laboratories, Phils. v. Alcaraz, G.R. No. 192571 (2013).

Hence, a dismissal based on just cause means that the probationary employee has committed a wrongful act or omission while a dismissal based on an authorized cause means that there exists a ground which the law itself allows to be invoked to justify the termination of an employee even if he has not committed any wrongful act or omission such as redundancy or cessation of business operations.

In your case, your dismissal was caused by the whims of your boss who did not give you the opportunity to explain yourself nor was there due process undertaken to satisfy compliance of the law. As such, there is evident violation of the labor law and you can file a case against the company so you may be reinstated or in case of strained relations, be rightly compensated. I hope this has helped answer your query.