Published — June 1, 2022
The following post does not create a lawyer-client relationship between Alburo Alburo and Associates Law Offices (or any of its lawyers) and the reader. It is still best for you to engage the services of your own lawyer to address your legal concerns, if any.
Also, the matters contained in the following were written in accordance with the law, rules, and jurisprudence prevailing at the time of writing and posting, and do not include any future developments on the subject matter under discussion.
In connection with Serious Misconduct and Gross Negligence as just causes for dismissal, read more here: The Different Grounds for Termination of Employment
Serious Misconduct and Gross Negligence are both just causes for dismissal from employment under Article 297 of the Labor Code of the Philippines. These just causes for dismissal are different basis for dismissal and are applied to certain circumstances. To distinguish the two, provided below are the description of the said causes which justify an employee’s dismissal.
As regards misconduct, it is defined as an improper or wrongful conduct. It is a transgression of some established and definite rule of action, a forbidden act, a dereliction of duty, willful in character, and implies wrongful intent and not mere error in judgment. To constitute a valid cause for the dismissal within the text and meaning of Article 297 (282) of the Labor Code, the employee’s misconduct must be serious, i.e., of such grave and aggravated character and not merely trivial or unimportant (Jmasen Philippine Manufacturing Corp. v. Alcon, G.R. No. 194884, October 22, 2014,739 SCRA 186,196-197).
Additionally, the misconduct must be related to the performance of the employee’s duties showing him to be unfit to continue working for the employer (Tomada, Sr. v. RFM Corporation-Bakery Flour Division, 615 Phil. 449, 459 [2009]). Further, and equally important and required, the act or conduct must have been performed with wrongful intent (Echeverria v. Venutek Medika, Inc., 544 Phil. 763, 770 [2007]).
To summarize, for misconduct or improper behavior to be a just cause for dismissal, the following elements must concur: (a) the misconduct must be serious; (b) it must relate to the performance of the employee’s duties showing that the employee has become unfit to continue working for the employer; and (c) it must have been performed with wrongful intent (Jmasen Philippine Manufacturing Corp. v. Alcon).
On the other hand, gross negligence implies two (2) concurring factors: the neglect of duties must not only be gross but habitual as well. Gross negligence means an absence of that diligence that a reasonably prudent man would use in his own affairs, and connotes want of care in the performance of one’s duties. Habitual neglect implies repeated failure to perform one’s duties for a period of time, depending upon the circumstances (Sy and Alix vs. Neat, Inc., Banana Peel and Ng, G.R. No. 213748, November 27, 2017).
In various cases, gross negligence connotes want of care in the performance of one’s duties, it is a negligence characterized by the want of even slight care, acting or omitting to act in a situation where there is duty to act, not inadvertently but willfully and intentionally, with a conscious indifference to consequences insofar as other persons may be affected. It evinces a thoughtless disregard of consequences without exerting any effort to avoid them (Sps. Carbonell vs. Metropolitan Bank and Trust Company, G.R. No. 178467, April 26, 2017).
Thus, considering the definitions indicated above, can an employee’s act be considered as both serious misconduct and gross negligence so as to justify his or her dismissal? The answer is NO.
In the 2019 case of CMP Federal Security Agency, Inc. and/or Ms. Carolina Mabanta-Piad Vs. Noel T. Reyes, Sr. (G.R. No. 223082), an employee’s services were terminated by his employer. Indicated on his termination letter was the grounds relied upon by his employer for his dismissal which is both hinged on serious misconduct and gross negligence. The Supreme Court was not convinced. Thus, the highest court of the land through Justice Mariano C. Del Castillo explained that, the findings that an employee is guilty of serious misconduct is incompatible with the charges of negligence which, by definition, requires lack of wrongful intent.
To elaborate, in serious misconduct, the employee should be animated by a wrongful intent to commit a transgression. The wrongful intent is absent in charges of gross negligence because the employee is not moved by his or her serious intention to do wrong but his lack of diligence or care
Alburo Alburo and Associates Law Offices specializes in business law and labor law consulting. For inquiries, you may reach us at info@alburolaw.com, or dial us at (02)7745-4391/0917-5772207.
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