Dear Atty. Vlad,

I own several hardware stores in the CAMANAVA area. When I visited one of our stores in Valenzuela City, the Branch Manager, Mr. Roque, was absent. Further, when I met with the store staff and asked them about the performance of Mr. Roque, they responded in the negative. To validate their claims, I asked them to execute affidavits and/or to submit supporting documents. After gathering all the affidavits and supporting documents, I issued a Notice to Explain to Mr. Roque. Mr. Roque got mad and he told me that what I am doing is harassment. He also told me that I have no right to issue the Notice to Explain to him. Is Mr. Roque correct? I hope that you can help me.

Romy Quiroz

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Dear Mr. Quiroz,

From what you shared to me, before issuing the Notice to Explain, you validated the claims of the store staff and even asked them to execute Affidavits and supporting documents. Hence, Mr. Roque cannot claim that you are harassing him. Your act/s fall well within your management prerogatives as the employer. In the case of Uniwide Sales Warehouse Club vs. NLRC and Amalia P. Kawada, G.R. 154503, 29 February 2008, the Supreme Court stated:

“The Court finds that private respondent’s allegation of harassment is a specious statement which contains nothing but empty imputation of a fact that could hardly be given any evidentiary weight by this Court. Private respondent’s bare allegations of constructive dismissal, when uncorroborated by the evidence on record, cannot be given credence.

The sending of several memoranda addressed to a managerial or supervisory employee concerning various violations of company rules and regulations, committed on different occasions, are not unusual. The alleged February to June 1998 series of memoranda given by petitioners to private respondent asking the latter to explain the alleged irregular acts should not be construed as a form of harassment but merely an exercise of management’s prerogative to discipline its employees.”

Applying the above-cited decision of the Court, Mr. Roque cannot safely claim that he is being harassed. The issuance of the Notice to Explain emanated your management prerogative as the employer. Mr. Roque should appreciate the fact that he was not immediately given a disciplinary action. He was afforded his right to due process so that he can prove his innocence by providing an explanation to the charges against him. The issuance of a Notice to Explain is not a penalty already but merely an opportunity given to employees to clear their names in case the charges are baseless.

I hope that I was able to help you based on the facts that you shared.

Atty. Vlad del Rosario