Philasia Shipping Agency Corp vs. Andres G. Tomacruz

Philasia Shipping Agency Corporation and/or Intermodal Shipping, Inc.  vs. Andres G. Tomacruz, G.R. No. 181180, August 15, 2012

Andres G. Tomacruz (Tomacruz) was a seafarer, whose services were engaged by PHILASIA Shipping Agency Corp., (PHILASIA) on behalf of Intermodal Shipping Inc. (petitioners) as Oiler  on board the vessel M/V Saligna.4 A twelve-month Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) Contract of Employment was duly signed by the parties on January 9, 2002.

This was preceded by four similar contracts, which Tomacruz was able to complete for the petitioners, aboard different vessels. For all five contracts, Tomacruz was required to undergo a pre-employment medical examination and obtain a “fit to work” rating before he could be deployed.

Having been issued a clean bill of health, Tomacruz boarded M/V Saligna on January 15, 2002 and performed his duties without any incident. However, sometime in September 2002, during the term of his last contract, Tomacruz noticed blood in his urine. Tomacruz immediately reported this to the Ship Captain, who referred him to a doctor in Japan. Tomacruz was subjected to several check-ups and ultrasounds, which revealed a “stone” in his right kidney. Despite such diagnosis, no medical certificate was issued; thus, he was allowed to continue working

Tomacruz was repatriated to the Philippines and sent to Micah Medical Clinic & Diagnostic Laboratory. The November 19, 2002 KUB Ultrasound report of the clinic revealed that he had stones in both his kidneys 

Referred by Micah Medical Clinic to Dr. Nicomedes Cruz, the company-designated physician, Tomacruz went through more tests, medications, and treatments. On July 25, 2003, Dr. Cruz declared Tomacruz fit to work despite a showing that there were stones about 0.4 cm in size found in both his kidneys, and there was the possibility of hematoma. Intending to get his sixth contract, Tomacruz, armed with the declaration that he was fit to work, proceeded to the office of the petitioners to seek employment. However, he was told by PHILASIA that because of the huge amount that was spent on his treatment, their insurance company did not like his services anymore.

Tomacruz filed a complaint for disability benefits, sickness wages, damages, and attorney’s fees against the petitioners, before the Quezon City Arbitration Branch of the NLRC.

The Labor Arbiter explained that as such, he was a contractual employee, whose employment was governed by the contract that he signed every time he was hired. Thus, the Labor  Arbiter held, once the seafarer’s employment was terminated either by completion of contract or repatriation due to a medical reason or any other authorized cause under the POEA Standard Employment Contract (SEC), the employer was under no obligation to re-contract the seafarer.

Issue: Entitlement of Tomacruz to Disability Benefits

Held:

Entitlement of seafarers to disability benefits is governed not only by medical findings but also by contract and by law. By contract, Department Order No. 4, series of 2000, of the Department of Labor and Employment (POEA SEC) and the parties’ Collective Bargaining Agreement bind the seafarer and the employer.  By law, the Labor Code provisions on disability apply with equal force to seafarers.

The petitioners are mistaken in their notion that only the POEA SEC should be considered in resolving the issue at hand. The applicability of the Labor Code provisions on permanent disability, particularly Article 192(c)(1), to seafarers, is already a settled matter. This Court, in the recent case of Magsaysay Maritime Corporation v. Lobusta,  reiterating our ruling in Remigio v. National Labor Relations Commission,  explained: The standard employment contract for seafarers was formulated by the POEA pursuant to its mandate under Executive Order No. 247 to “secure the best terms and conditions of employment of Filipino contract workers and ensure compliance therewith” and to “promote and protect the well being of Filipino workers overseas.” Section 29 of the 1996 POEA [Standard Employment Contract] itself provides that “[a]ll rights and obligations of the parties to [the] Contract, including the annexes thereof, shall be governed by the laws of the Republic of the Philippines, international conventions, treaties and covenants where the Philippines is a signatory.” Even without this provision, a contract of labor is so impressed with public interest that the New Civil Code expressly subjects it to the “special laws on labor unions, collective bargaining, strikes and lockouts, closed shop, wages, working conditions, hours of labor and similar subjects.”