A. Right to Self-organization

All Employees

All persons employed in commercial, industrial and agricultural enterprises and in religious, charitable, medical or educational institutions, whether operating for profit or not, shall have the right to self-organization and to form, join or assist labor organizations of their own choosing for purposes of collective bargaining. (Presumes an employer-employee relationship)

Ambulant, intermittent and itinerant workers, self-employed people, rural workers and those without any definite employers may form labor organizations for their mutual aid and protection [Art. 253].

Any employee, whether employed for a definite period or not, shall, beginning on his first day of service, be considered an employee for purposes of membership in any labor union [Art. 292(c)].

Employee […] shall include any individual whose work has ceased as a result of or in connection with any current labor dispute or because of any unfair labor practice if he has not obtained any other substantially equivalent and regular employment [Art. 219(f)].

Employees of non-profit organizations are now permitted to form, organize or join labor unions of their choice for purposes of collective bargaining [FEU-Dr. Nicanor Reyes Medical Foundation Inc. v. Trajano, G.R. No. 76273 (1987)].

Aliens with Valid Working Permits

General Rule: All aliens, natural or juridical, […] are strictly prohibited from engaging directly or indirectly in all forms of trade union activities [Art. 284].

Exception: Aliens may exercise the right to self-organization and join or assist labor unions for purposes of collective bargaining, provided the following requisites are fulfilled:

• With valid working permits issued by the DOLE; and
• They are nationals of a country which grants the same or similar rights to Filipino workers [Art. 284]
• As certified by DFA; OR
• Has ratified either ILO Conventions No. 87 and 98 [Sec. 2, Rule II, Book V, IRR]

Security Personnel

The security guards and other personnel employed by the security service contractor shall have the right:

• To form, join, or assist in the formation of a labor organization of their own choosing for purposes of collective bargaining and
• To engage in concerted activities which are not contrary to law including the right to strike [D.O. No. 14 Series of 2001 (Guidelines Governing the Employment and Working Conditions of Security Guards and Similar Personnel in the Private Security Industry)].

On Dec. 24, 1986, President C. Aquino issued EO No. 111 which eliminated the provision which made security guards ineligible to join any labor organization. In 1989, Congress passed RA 6715 which also did not impose limitations on the ability of security guards to join labor organizations. Thus, security guards “may now freely join a labor organization of the rank-and-file or that of the supervisory union, depending on their rank” [Manila Electric Co. v. SOLE, G.R. No. 91902 (1991)].

Art. 253, Labor Code

All persons employed:

• In commercial, industrial and agricultural enterprises, and
• In religious, charitable, medical or educational institutions, whether operating for profit or not, shall have the right to –
• Self-organization,
• Form, join, or assist labor organization of their own choosing for purposes of collective bargaining.

Ambulant, intermittent and itinerant workers, self-employed people, rural workers and those without any definite employers may form labor organizations for their mutual aid and protection.

Art. 254, Labor Code

Employees of government corporations established under the corporation code shall have the right to:

• Organize, and
• Bargain collectively with their respective employers.

All other employees in the civil service shall have the right to form associations for purposes not contrary to law.

Infringement of the right to self- organization It shall be unlawful for any person to restrain, coerce, discriminate against or unduly interfere with employees and workers in their exercise of the right to self-organization [Art. 257, LC]

Scope of right to self-organization

• Right to form, join or assist labor organizations of their own choosing for the purpose of collective bargaining through representatives of their own choosing [Art. 257];
• Right to engage in lawful concerted activities for the same purpose (collective bargaining) or for their mutual aid and protection [Art. 257]
• The right of any person to join an organization also includes the right to leave that organization and join another one. [Heritage Hotel Manila v. PIGLAS- Heritage, G.R. No. 177024 (2009)]
• The right to form or join a labor organization necessarily includes the right to refuse or refrain from exercising said right. It is self-evident that just as no one should be denied the exercise of a right granted by law, so also, no one should be compelled to exercise such a conferred right. [Reyes v. Trajano, G.R. No. 84433 (1992)]
• The right of the employees to self- organization is a compelling reason why their withdrawal from the cooperative must be allowed. As pointed out by the union, the resignation of the member- employees is an expression of their preference for union membership over that of membership in the cooperative. [Central Negros Electric Cooperative v. SOLE, G.R. No. 94045 (1991)]
• Their freedom to form organizations would be rendered nugatory if they could not choose their own leaders to speak on their behalf and to bargain for them. [Pan- American World Airways, Inc v. Pan- American Employees Association, G.R. No. L-25094 (1969)]

FIRST ULP: INTERFERENCE (ART. 259 [A])

To interfere with, restrain or coerce employees in the exercise of their right to self-organization

Restriction on Right to Self-Organization

The questioned acts of petitioners, namely: 1) sponsoring a field trip to Zambales for its employees, to the exclusion of union members, before the scheduled certification election; 2) the active campaign by the sales officer of petitioners against the union prevailing as a bargaining agent during the field trip; 3) escorting its employees after the field trip to the polling center; 4) the continuous hiring of subcontractors performing respondents’ functions; 5) assigning union members to the Cabangan site to work as grass cutters; and 6) the enforcement of work on a rotational basis for union members, all reek of interference on the part of petitioners. Indubitably, the various acts of petitioners, taken together, reasonably support an inference that, indeed, such were all orchestrated to restrict respondents’ free exercise of their right to self– organization. (T&H Shopfitters Corporation v. T&H Shopfitters Corporation Union, G.R. No. 191714, 2014).