I. Right to Association

K. Right to Association

1987 CONST., art. III, sec. 8; art. XIII, sec. 3; art. IX-B, sec. 2(5)

> art. III, sec. 8 SECTION 8. The right of the people, including those employed in the public and private sectors, to form unions, associations, or societies for purposes not contrary to law shall not be abridged.

> art. XIII, sec. 3 SECTION 3. The State shall afford full protection to labor, local and overseas, organized and unorganized, and promote full employment and equality of employment opportunities for all.

It shall guarantee the rights of all workers to self-organization, collective bargaining and negotiations, and peaceful concerted activities, including the right to strike in accordance with law. They shall be entitled to security of tenure, humane conditions of work, and a living wage. They shall also participate in policy and decision-making processes affecting their rights and benefits as may be provided by law.

The State shall promote the principle of shared responsibility between workers and employers and the preferential use of voluntary modes in settling disputes, including conciliation, and shall enforce their mutual compliance therewith to foster industrial peace.

The State shall regulate the relations between workers and employers, recognizing the right of labor to its just share in the fruits of production and the right of enterprises to reasonable returns on investments, and to expansion and growth.

> art. IX-B, sec. 2(5) (5) The right to self-organization shall not be denied to government employees.

Scope

Persons, both in the public and private sectors, may form unions, associations, and societies. The right is recognized as belonging to the people whether employed or unemployed, and whether employed in the government or in the private sector. (Bernas, The 1987 Constitution: A Commentary, 2009)

Does Not Include the Right to Compel Others

The provision guarantees the right to form associations. It does not include the right to compel others to form an association. (Bernas, The 1987 Constitution: A Commentary, 2009)

Article III, Section 8 guarantees the freedom to associate as well as the freedom not to associate. The provision is not a basis to compel others to form or join an association. (Acosta v. Ochoa, G.R. Nos. 211559, 211567, 212570 & 215634, Oct. 15, 2019)

Updated: Freedom of association does not bar automatic association membership voluntarily accepted as a condition of a private sale (Cezar Yatco Real Estate Services, Inc. v. Bel-Air Village Association, Inc., G.R. No. 211780, 21 October 2019).

Aspect of Right of Liberty

The right to form associations shall not be impaired except through a valid exercise of police power. It is therefore an aspect of the general right of liberty.

It is also an aspect of the freedom of contract. (Bernas, The 1987 Philippine Constitution: A Comprehensive Reviewer, 2011)

Aspect of Freedom of Expression and of Belief

Insofar as the associations may have for their object the advancement of beliefs and ideas, the freedom of association is an aspect of the freedom of speech and expression, subject to the same limitation. (Bernas, The 1987 Philippine Constitution: A Comprehensive Reviewer, 2011)

Hierarchy of Civil Liberties

The Constitution recognizes a hierarchy of values. Hence, the degree of protection an association enjoys depends on the position which the association's objective or activity occupies in the constitutional hierarchy of values. (Bernas, The 1987 Philippine Constitution: A Comprehensive Reviewer, 2011)

Not Absolutely Guaranteed to Top-level and Middle Managers

The [Constitutional] Commission intended the absolute right to organize of government workers, supervisory employees, and security guards to be constitutionally guaranteed. By implication, no similar absolute constitutional right to organize for labor purposes should be deemed to have been granted to top-level and middle managers. As to them the right of self-organization may be regulated and even abridged conformably to Art. III, § 8.

If these managerial employees would belong to or be affiliated with a Union, the latter might not be assured of their loyalty to the Union in view of evident conflict of interests. The Union can also become company-dominated with the presence of managerial employees in Union membership (United Pepsi-Cola Supervisory Union (UPSU) v. Laguesma, G.R. No. 122226, March 25, 1998)

IRR of RA 10951; Sports Shooter Applicant

IRR of RA 10591; Sports Shooter Applicant

Section 4.10 of the Rules Implementing RA 10591 does not compel a sports shooter applicant to join a gun club or sports shooting association; it only provides that they must submit a certification from the president of a recognized gun club or sports shooting association that he or she is joining the competition. Thus, Section 4.10 does not violate Article III, Section 8 of the Constitution. (Acosta v. Ochoa, G.R. Nos. 211559, 211567, 212570 & 215634, Oct. 15, 2019)

Registration Not a Limitation to the Right

The registration of labor unions is not a limitation to the right of assembly or association, which may be exercised with or without said registration. The latter is merely a condition sine qua non for the acquisition of legal personality by labor organizations, associations or unions and the possession of the "rights and privileges granted by law to legitimate labor organizations". Such requirement is a valid exercise of the police power, because the activities in which labor organizations, associations and union of workers are engaged affect public interest, which should be protected. (Philippine Assoc. of Free Labor Unions v. Sec. of Labor, G.R. No. L-22228, Feb. 27, 1969)

State Not Obligated to Accord Official Status

The right to organize does not equate to the state’s obligation to accord official status to every single association that comes into existence. It is one thing for individuals to galvanize themselves as a collective, but it is another for the group that they formed to not only be formally recognized by the state, but also bedecked with all the benefits and privileges that are attendant to official status. In pursuit of public interest, the state can set reasonable regulations — procedural, formal, and substantive — with which organizations seeking state imprimatur must comply. (Quezon City PTCA Federation, Inc. vs DepEd, G.R. No. 188720, February 23, 2016)

Automatic or Compulsory Membership

Compulsory membership is an annotation on a lot owner's certificate of title. Hence, petitioners were bound by this annotation. The constitutional guarantee of freedom of association can only be invoked against the State, and does not apply to private transactions, like a sale, where a condition was validly imposed by the vendor. Automatic membership in a homeowners' association does not violate lot owners' right to freedom of association because they were not forced to buy their lots from the developer. (Cezar Yatco Real Estate Services, Inc. v. Bel-Air Village Association, Inc., G.R. No. 211780, Nov. 21, 2018.) Owner check: Verify the decision date for Cezar Yatco Real Estate Services, Inc. v. Bel-Air Village Association, Inc., G.R. No. 211780; the case decision is dated Oct. 21, 2019.

A closed shop agreement is legal since it is a valid form of union security. (Villar v. Inciong, G.R. No. L50283-84, April 20, 1983). Owner check: Verify the G.R. number for Villar v. Inciong; the case decision gives G.R. No. L-50283-84.

Organization of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines Legally Unobjectionable

Compulsory membership in the Integrated Bar of the Philippines does not violate the freedom of association. [It] has become an imperative means to raise the standards of the legal profession, improve the administration of justice, and enable the Bar to discharge its public responsibility fully and effectively. (In Re: Edillion, AC-1928, December 19, 1980)

Other Constitutional Provisions Related to the Right to Association:

The State shall guarantee the rights of all workers to self-organization, collective bargaining and negotiations, and peaceful concerted activities, including the right to strike in accordance with law. (1987 Const., art. XIII, § 3, par. 2)

The right to self-organization shall not be denied to government employees. (Phil Const., art. IX-B, § 2, par. 5)