CA upholds P240.6-M award for 500 GMA workers

CA upholds P240.6-M award for 500 GMA workers | Daily Tribune

The CA also upheld the NLRC’s ruling affirming the labor arbiter’s 17 Sept. 2024 order denying GMA Network’s motion to quash the writ of execution.

“All told, We find that the NLRC did not gravely abuse its discretion in rendering the assailed Decision and Resolution, considering that it based its conclusions on substantial evidence, and on relevant laws and jurisprudence. Accordingly, the petition for certiorari under Rule 65 of the Rules of Court is dismissed. The assailed decision and resolution of the National Labor Relations Commission – Third Division in NLRC LER No. 09-282-24, NLRC LAC Case No. 05-001638-23, and NLRC NCR Case No. 11-00776-21 are affirmed.The CA found no grave abuse of discretion on the part of the NLRC in ruling against the network.”

The case stemmed from a complaint filed by the GMA Employees Union (GMAEU) and 500 of its members against the network for unfair labor practice, nonpayment of hazard pay, moral damages, and attorney’s fees.

Labor arbiter Irene Castro de Quiroz, in a 22 Dec. 2022 decision, found the television network guilty of unfair labor practice and ordered it to pay hazard pay and attorney’s fees.

The ruling covered the period when community quarantine measures were imposed during the pandemic.

Later, the NLRC denied GMA Network’s appeal and motion for reconsideration in its 22 June 2023 decision and 16 Oct. 2023 resolution.

It subsequently issued an entry of judgment declaring the resolution final and executory on 30 Oct. 2023.

The union then sought the execution and recomputation of the award, covering the period from 17 March 2020 to 31 March 2021.

It argued that the employees’ entitlement to hazard pay should continue until 20 July 2023 because President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. lifted the COVID-19 state of public health emergency only on 21 June 2023.

Initially, the employees sought execution of an award amounting to P66.5 million in hazard pay and attorney’s fees for the 17 March 2020 to 31 March 2021 period.

Additional hazard pay and 10% attorney’s fees for 1 April 2021 to 20 July 2023 were also sought by the union.

The labor arbiter, on 4 March 2024, granted the union’s motion for execution and recomputation.

On 8 July 2024, with no restraining or injunctive order from the CA or Supreme Court, the labor arbiter issued a writ of execution directing the sheriff to collect P240,626,650 from GMA Network as the employees’ judgment award.

It also included P2.4 million in execution fees and P401,044.42 in deposit fees under the NLRC Manual on Execution.

The network moved to quash the writ, arguing that it was not given notice of the final recomputation of the judgment award or an opportunity to comment before the writ was issued.

But the labor arbiter denied the motion, prompting GMA Network to seek relief from the NLRC, which also ruled against the network.

But the CA found the writ validly issued, saying the labor arbiter was not required to issue a separate order approving the actual recomputation made by the NLRC’s Computation and Examination Unit before issuing the writ of execution.

The CA cited Section 1, Rule XI of the 2025 NLRC Rules of Procedure, which provides that a labor arbiter “shall motu proprio issue a writ of execution” once a decision or order becomes final and executory.

The network’s claim that it was denied due process was also rejected by the CA, which noted that the network had been given an opportunity to be heard during the pre-execution conference before the labor arbiter.