Alliance of Government Workers v Minister of Labor and Employment, 124 SCRA 1 (1983)
F: Petitioner is a federation
of unions in govt-owned corps. and in govt schools. It petitioned the SC for a ruling that PD 851, requiring "all employers... to pay their employees receiving a basic salary of not more than P1,000 a month... a 13th month pay," applies to govt employees
HELD: NO. It is an old rule of statutory construction that restrictive statutes and acts w/c impose burdens on the public treasury or w/c diminish rights and interests, no matter how broad their terms do not embrace the Sovereign, unless the Sovereign is specifically mentioned. The Republic of the Phil. as a sovereign cannot be covered by a general term like "employer" unless the language used in the law is clear and specific to that effect.
ISSUE 2: May government employees act through a labor federation which uses the collective bargaining power to secure increased compensation for its members?
HELD: NO. The terms and conditions of employment in the Govern¬ment including any political subdivision or instrumentality thereof are governed by law. And this is effected through stat¬utes or administrative circulars, rules and regulations and not through Collective Bargaining agreements.
Under the present
constitution, (1973), GOCC's are now part of the civil service, thus, not allowed to use concerted activi¬ties to get other benefits or higher salaries different from that provided by law and regulation For more case digests and law school notes visit lizajamarga.com.