Republic of the Philippines

SUPREME COURT
Manila
FIRST DIVISION
G.R. No. 153031
December 14, 2006
PCL SHIPPING PHILIPPINES, INC. and U-MING
MARINE TRANSPORT CORPORATION, petitioners,
vs.
NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS COMMISSION and
STEVE RUSEL, respondents.
DECISION
AUSTRIA-MARTINEZ, J.:
Before the Court is a petition for review
on certiorari under Rule 45 of the Rules of Court
assailing the Decision1 of the Court of Appeals (CA)
dated December 18, 2001 in CA-G.R. SP No. 59976,
which affirmed the Decision of the National Labor
Relations Commission (NLRC) dated March 22, 2000 in
NLRC NCR CA No. 018120-99; and the Resolution of the
CA dated April 10, 2002, denying petitioners' motion
for reconsideration.2
The facts of the case, as found by the CA, are as
follows:
In April 1996, Rusel was employed as GP/AB seaman by
manning agency, PCL Shipping Philippines, Inc. (PCL
Shipping) for and in behalf of its foreign principal, UMing Marine Transport Corporation (U-Ming Marine).
Rusel thereby joined the vessel MV Cemtex General
(MV Cemtex) for the contract period of twelve (12)
months with a basic monthly salary of US$400.00,
living allowance of US$140.00, fixed overtime rate of
US$120.00 per month, vacation leave with pay of
US$40.00 per month and special allowance of
US$175.00.
On July 16, 1996, while Rusel was cleaning the vessel's
kitchen, he slipped, and as a consequence thereof, he
suffered a broken and/or sprained ankle on his left foot.
A request for medical examination was flatly denied by
the captain of the vessel. On August 13, 1996, feeling
an unbearable pain in his ankle, Rusel jumped off the
vessel using a life jacket and swam to shore. He was
brought to a hospital where he was confined for eight
(8) days.
On August 22, 1996, a vessel's agent fetched Rusel
from the hospital and was required to board a plane
bound for the Philippines.
On September 26, 1996, Rusel filed a complaint for
illegal dismissal, non-payment of wages, overtime pay,
claim for medical benefits, sick leave pay and damages
against PCL Shipping and U-Ming Marine before the
arbitration branch of the NLRC. In their answer, the
latter alleged that Rusel deserted his employment by
jumping off the vessel.
On July 21, 1998, the labor arbiter rendered his
decision, the dispositive portion of which reads as
follows:

Wherefore, above premises duly considered we find the

respondent liable for unjust repatriation of the
complainant.
Accordingly, the following award is hereby adjudged
against the respondent:
1. The amount of $2,625.00 or its peso equivalent at
the time of payment representing three (3) months
salary of the complainant due to his illegal dismissal.
2. The amount of $1,600.00 or its peso equivalent,
representing sick wage benefits.
3. The amount of $550.00 or its peso equivalent,
representing living allowance, overtime pay and special
allowance for two (2) months.
4. The amount of $641.66 or its peso equivalent,
representing unpaid wages from August 11 to 22,
1996.
5. Attorney's fees equivalent to 10% of the total
monetary award.
The rest of the claims are dismissed for lack of merit.
SO ORDERED.3
Aggrieved by the Decision of the Labor Arbiter, herein
petitioners appealed to the NLRC. In its Decision dated
March 22, 2000, the NLRC affirmed the findings of the
Labor Arbiter but modified the appealed Decision,
disposing as follows:
WHEREFORE, premises considered, the assailed
decision is as it is hereby ordered MODIFIED in that the
amount representing three months salary of the
complainant due to his illegal dismissal is reduced to
US$1,620.00. Further the award of sick wage benefit is
deleted.
All other dispositions are AFFIRMED.
SO ORDERED.4
Petitioners filed a Motion for Reconsideration but the
NLRC denied the same in its Decision of May 3, 2000. 5
Petitioners filed a petition for certiorari with the CA.6 In
its Decision dated December 18, 2001, the CA
dismissed the petition and affirmed the NLRC Decision. 7
Petitioners filed a Motion for Reconsideration but it was
denied by the CA in its Resolution dated April 10,
2002.8
Hence, the instant petition with the following
assignment of errors:
I. The Court of Appeals erred in ruling that private
respondent was illegally dismissed from employment.
xxxx
II. Likewise, the Court of Appeals erred in not upholding
petitioners' right to pre-terminate private respondent's
employment.
xxxx
III. The private respondent is not entitled to other
money claims, particularly as to the award of
attorney's fees.9
As to their first assigned error, petitioners contend that
the CA erred in affirming the findings of the NLRC that
Rusel's act of jumping ship does not establish any
intent on his part to abandon his job and never return.

Petitioners argue that Rusel's very act of jumping from

the vessel and swimming to shore is evidence of
highest degree that he has no intention of returning to
his job.
Petitioners further contend that if Rusel was indeed
suffering from unbearable and unmitigated pain, it is
unlikely that he is able to swim two (2) nautical miles,
which is the distance between their ship and the shore,
considering that he needed to use his limbs in
swimming. Petitioners further assert that it is error on
the part of the CA to disregard the entries contained in
the logbook and in the Marine Note Protest evidencing
Rusels' offense of desertion because while these pieces
of evidence were belatedly presented, the settled rule
is that additional evidence may be admitted on appeal
in labor cases.
Petitioners also contend that Rusel's act of desertion is
a grave and serious offense and considering the nature
and situs of employment as well as the nationality of
the employer, the twin requirements of notice and
hearing before an employee can be validly terminated
may be dispensed with.
As to their second assigned error, petitioners contend
that assuming, for the sake of argument, that Rusel is
not guilty of desertion, they invoked the alternative
defense that the termination of his employment was
validly made pursuant to petitioners' right to exercise
their prerogative to pre-terminate such employment in
accordance with Section 19(C) of the Standard Terms
and Conditions Governing the Employment of Filipino
Seafarers On-Board Ocean-Going Vessels, which
provision was incorporated in Rusel's Contract of
Employment with petitioners. Petitioners assert that
despite the fact that this issue was raised before the
CA, the appellate court failed to resolve the same.
Anent the last assigned error, petitioners argue that it
is error on the part of the CA to affirm the award of
living allowance, overtime pay, vacation pay and
special allowance for two months because Rusel failed
to submit substantial evidence to prove that he is
entitled to these awards.
Petitioners further argue that these money claims,
particularly the claim for living allowance, should not
be granted because they partake of the nature of
earned benefits for services rendered by a seafarer.
Petitioners also contend that the balance of Rusel's
wages from August 11-22, 1996 should be applied for
the payment of the costs of his repatriation,
considering that under Section 19(E) of the Standard
Terms and Conditions Governing the Employment of
Filipino Seafarers On-Board Ocean-Going Vessels, when
a seafarer is discharged for any just cause, the
employer shall have the right to recover the costs of
his replacement and repatriation from the seafarer's
wages and other earnings.
Lastly, petitioners argue that the award of attorney's
fees should be deleted because there is nothing in the
decision of the Labor Arbiter or the NLRC which states
the reason why attorney's fees are being awarded.

In his Comment, private respondent contends that

petitioners are raising issues of fact which have already
been resolved by the Labor Arbiter, NLRC and the CA.
Private respondent argues that, aside from the fact
that the issues raised were already decided by three
tribunals against petitioners' favor, it is a settled rule
that only questions of law may be raised in a petition
for review on certiorari under Rule 45 of the Rules of
Court.
While there are exceptions to this rule, private
respondent contends that the instant case does not fall
under any of these exceptions. Private respondent
asserts that petitioners failed to substantiate their
claim that the former is guilty of desertion.
Private respondent further contends that the right to
due process is available to local and overseas workers
alike, pursuant to the provisions of the Constitution on
labor and equal protection as well as the declared
policy contained in the Labor Code. Private respondent
argues that petitioners' act of invoking the provisions
of Section 19(C) of the POEA Contract as an alternative
defense is misplaced and is inconsistent with their
primary defense that private respondent was dismissed
on the ground of desertion.
As to the award of attorney's fees, private respondent
contends that since petitioners' act compelled the
former to incur expenses to protect his interest and
enforce his lawful claims, and because petitioners
acted in gross and evident bad faith in refusing to
satisfy private respondent's lawful claims, it is only
proper that attorney's fees be awarded in favor of the
latter. Anent the other monetary awards, private
respondent argues that these awards are all premised
on the findings of the Labor Arbiter, NLRC and the CA
that private respondent's dismissal was improper and
illegal.
The Court finds the petition without merit.
Anent the first assigned error, it is a settled rule that
under Rule 45 of the Rules of Court, only questions of
law may be raised in this Court.10 Judicial review by this
Court does not extend to a re-evaluation of the
sufficiency of the evidence upon which the proper labor
tribunal has based its determination.11
Firm is the doctrine that this Court is not a trier of facts,
and this applies with greater force in labor
cases.12 Factual issues may be considered and resolved
only when the findings of facts and conclusions of law
of the Labor Arbiter are inconsistent with those of the
NLRC and the CA.13 The reason for this is that the
quasi-judicial agencies, like the Arbitration Board and
the NLRC, have acquired a unique expertise because
their jurisdiction are confined to specific matters. 14
In the present case, the question of whether private
respondent is guilty of desertion is factual. The Labor
Arbiter, NLRC and the CA are unanimous in their
findings that private respondent is not guilty of
desertion and that he has been illegally terminated
from his employment. After a review of the records of

the instant case, this Court finds no cogent reason to

depart from the findings of these tribunals.

seaman and that with the full use of both his arms and
the help of a life jacket, was able to reach the shore.

Petitioners assert that the entries in the logbook of MV

Cemtex
General15 and
in
the
Marine
Note
16
Protest which they submitted to the NLRC confirm the
fact that private respondent abandoned the vessel in
which he was assigned. However, the genuineness of
the Marine Note Protest as well as the entries in the
logbook are put in doubt because aside from the fact
that they were presented only during petitioners'
Motion for Reconsideration filed with the NLRC, both
the Marine Note Protest and the entry in the logbook
which were prepared by the officers of the vessel were
neither notarized nor authenticated by the proper
authorities.

As correctly defined by petitioners, desertion, in

maritime law is:
The act by which a seaman deserts and abandons a
ship or vessel, in which he had engaged to perform a
voyage, before the expiration of his time, and without
leave. By desertion, in maritime law, is meant, not a
mere unauthorized absence from the ship, without
leave, but an unauthorized absence from the ship with
an intention not to return to her service; or as it is
often expressed, animo non revertendi, that is, with an
intention to desert.19 (emphasis supplied)

Moreover, a reading of these entries simply shows that

private respondent was presumed to have deserted his
post on the sole basis that he was found missing while
the MV Cemtex General was anchored at the port of
Takehara, Japan. Hence, without any corroborative
evidence, these documents cannot be used as bases
for concluding that private respondent was guilty of
desertion.
Petitioners also question the findings and conclusion of
the Labor Arbiter and the NLRC that what caused
private respondent in jumping overboard was the
unmitigated pain he was suffering which was
compounded by the inattention of the vessel's captain
to provide him with the necessary treatment inspite of
the fact that the ship was moored for about two weeks
at the anchorage of Takehara, Japan; and, that private
respondent's act was a desperate move to protect
himself and to seek relief for his physical suffering.
Petitioners contend that the findings and conclusions of
the Labor Arbiter and the NLRC which were affirmed by
the CA are based on conjecture because there is no
evidence to prove that, at the time he jumped ship,
private respondent was really suffering from an ankle
injury.
It is true that no substantial evidence was presented to
prove that the cause of private respondent's
confinement in a hospital in Takehara, Japan was his
ankle injury. The Court may not rely on the letter
marked as Annex "B" and attached to private
respondent's Position Paper because it was unsigned
and it was not established who executed the same. 17
However, the result of the x-ray examination
conducted by the LLN Medical Services, Inc. on August
26, 1996, right after private respondent was
repatriated to the Philippines, clearly showed that
there is a soft-tissue swelling around his ankle
joint.18 This evidence is consistent with private
respondent's claim that he was then suffering from an
ankle injury which caused him to jump off the ship.
As to petitioners' contention that private respondent
could not have traversed the distance between the
ship and the shore if he was indeed suffering from
unbearable pain by reason of his ankle injury, suffice it
to say that private respondent is an able-bodied

Hence, for a seaman to be considered as guilty of

desertion, it is essential that there be evidence to
prove that if he leaves the ship or vessel in which he
had engaged to perform a voyage, he has the clear
intention of abandoning his duty and of not returning to
the ship or vessel. In the present case, however,
petitioners failed to present clear and convincing proof
to show that when private respondent jumped ship, he
no longer had the intention of returning.
The fact alone that he jumped off the ship where he
was stationed, swam to shore and sought medical
assistance for the injury he sustained is not a sufficient
basis for petitioners to conclude that he had the
intention of deserting his post. Settled is the rule that
in termination cases, the burden of proof rests upon
the employer to show that the dismissal is for a just
and valid cause.20
The case of the employer must stand or fall on its own
merits and not on the weakness of the employee's
defense.21 In the present case, since petitioners failed
to discharge their burden of proving that private
respondent is guilty of desertion, the Court finds no
reason to depart from the conclusion of the Labor
Arbiter, NLRC and the CA that private respondent's
dismissal is illegal.
In their second assigned error, petitioners cite Section
19(C) of POEA Memorandum Circular No. 0559622 known as the Revised Standard Employment
Terms and Conditions Governing the Employment of
Filipino Seafarers On Board Ocean-Going Vessels as
their alternative basis in terminating the employment
of private respondent. Said Section provides as follows:
Section 19. REPATRIATION
xxxx
C. If the vessel arrives at a convenient port within a
period of three months before the expiration of his
contract, the master/ employer may repatriate the
seafarer from such port provided that the seafarer shall
be paid all his earned wages. In addition, the seafarer
shall also be paid his leave pay for the entire contract
period plus a termination pay equivalent to one (1)
month of his basic pay, provided, however, that this
mode of termination may only be exercised by the
master/employer if the original contract period of the
seafarer is at least ten (10) months; provided, further,
that the conditions for this mode of termination shall
not apply to dismissal for cause.

The Court is not persuaded. POEA Memorandum

Circular No. 055-96 took effect on January 1, 1997
while the contract of employment entered into by and
between private respondent and petitioners was
executed on April 10, 1996. Hence, it is wrong for
petitioners to cite this particular Memorandum because
at the time of petitioners' and private respondent's
execution
of
their
contract
of
employment
Memorandum Circular No. 055-96 was not yet
effective.

The only defense raised by petitioners in their Answer

with Counterclaim filed with the office of the Labor
Arbiter is that private respondent was dismissed from
employment by reason of desertion. 23 Under the Rules
of Court,24 which is applicable in a suppletory character
in labor cases before the Labor Arbiter or the NLRC
pursuant to Section 3, Rule I of the New Rules of
Procedure of the NLRC25, defenses which are not raised
either in a motion to dismiss or in the answer are
deemed waived.26

What was in effect at the time private respondent's

Contract of Employment was executed was POEA
Memorandum Circular No. 41, Series of 1989.

Granting, for the sake of argument, that petitioners

may use Section H (6), Part I of Memorandum Circular
No. 41 or Section 19(C) of Memorandum Circular No.
055-96 as basis for terminating private respondent's
employment, it is clear that one of the conditions
before any of these provisions becomes applicable is
when the vessel arrives at a convenient port within a
period of three (3) months before the expiration of the
contract of employment.

It is clearly provided under the second paragraph of

private respondent's Contract of Employment that the
terms and conditions provided under Memorandum
Circular No. 41, Series of 1989 shall be strictly and
faithfully observed. Hence, it is Memorandum Circular
No. 41, Series of 1989 which governs private
respondent's contract of employment.
Section H (6), Part I of Memorandum Circular No. 41,
which has almost identical provisions with Section 19
(C) of Memorandum Circular No. 055-96, provides as
follows:
SECTION H. TERMINATION OF EMPLOYMENT
xxxx
6. If the vessel arrives at a convenient port within a
period of three (3) months before the expiration of the
Contract, the master/employer may repatriate the
seaman from such port provided that the seaman shall
be paid all his earned wages.
In addition, the seaman shall also be paid his leave pay
for the entire contract period plus a termination pay
equivalent to one (1) month of his basic pay, provided,
however, that this mode of termination may only be
exercised by the master/employer if the original
contact period of the seaman is at least ten (10)
months; provided, further, that the conditions for this
mode of termination shall not apply to dismissal for
cause.
The Court agrees with private respondent's contention
that petitioners' arguments are misplaced. Petitioners
may not use the above-quoted provision as basis for
terminating private respondent's employment because
it is incongruent with their primary defense that the
latter's dismissal from employment was for cause.
Petitioners may not claim that they ended private
respondent's services because he is guilty of desertion
and at the same time argue that they exercised their
option to prematurely terminate his employment, even
without cause, simply because they have the right to
do so under their contract. These grounds for
termination are inconsistent with each other such that
the use of one necessarily negates resort to the other.
Besides, it appears from the records that petitioners'
alternative defense was pleaded merely as an
afterthought because it was only in their appeal with
the NLRC that they raised this defense.

In the present case, private respondent's contract was

executed on April 10, 1996 for a duration of twelve
months. He was deployed aboard MV Cemtex
General on June 25, 1996 and repatriated to the
Philippines on August 22, 1996. Hence, it is clear that
petitioners did not meet this condition because private
respondent's termination was not within a period of
three months before the expiration of his contract of
employment.
Moreover, the Court finds nothing in the records to
show that petitioners complied with the other
conditions enumerated therein, such as the payment of
all of private respondent's earned wages together with
his leave pay for the entire contract period as well as
termination pay equivalent to his one month salary.
Petitioners admit that they did not inform private
respondent in writing of the charges against him and
that they failed to conduct a formal investigation to
give him opportunity to air his side. However,
petitioners contend that the twin requirements of
notice and hearing applies strictly only when the
employment is within the Philippines and that these
need not be strictly observed in cases of international
maritime or overseas employment.
The Court does not agree. The provisions of the
Constitution as well as the Labor Code which afford
protection to labor apply to Filipino employees whether
working within the Philippines or abroad. Moreover, the
principle of lex loci contractus (the law of the place
where the contract is made) governs in this
jurisdiction.27
In the present case, it is not disputed that the Contract
of Employment entered into by and between
petitioners and private respondent was executed here
in the Philippines with the approval of the Philippine
Overseas Employment Administration (POEA). Hence,
the Labor Code together with its implementing rules
and regulations and other laws affecting labor apply in
this case.28

Accordingly, as to the requirement of notice and

hearing in the case of a seafarer, the Court has already
ruled in a number of cases that before a seaman can
be dismissed and discharged from the vessel, it is
required that he be given a written notice regarding
the charges against him and that he be afforded a
formal investigation where he could defend himself
personally or through a representative.29 Hence, the
employer should strictly comply with the twin
requirements of notice and hearing without regard to
the nature and situs of employment or the nationality
of the employer. Petitioners failed to comply with these
twin requirements.
Petitioners also contend that the wages of private
respondent from August 11-22, 1996 were applied to
the costs of his repatriation. Petitioners argue that the
off-setting of the costs of his repatriation against his
wages for the aforementioned period is allowed under
the provisions of Section 19(E) of Memorandum
Circular No. 055-96 which provides that when the
seafarer is discharged for any just cause, the employer
shall have the right to recover the costs of his
replacement and repatriation from the seafarer's
wages and other earnings.
The Court does not agree. Section 19(E) of
Memorandum Circular No. 055-96 has its counterpart
provision under Section H (2), Part II of Memorandum
Circular No. 41, to wit:
SECTION H. REPATRIATION
xxxx
2. When the seaman is discharged for disciplinary
reasons, the employer shall have the right to recover
the costs of maintenance and repatriation from the
seaman's balance of wages and other earnings.
xxxx
It is clear under the above-quoted provision that the
employer shall have the right to recover the cost of
repatriation from the seaman's wages and other
earnings only if the concerned seaman is validly
discharged for disciplinary measures. In the present
case, since petitioners failed to prove that private
respondent was validly terminated from employment
on the ground of desertion, it only follows that they do
not have the right to deduct the costs of private
respondent's repatriation from his wages and other
earnings.
Lastly, the Court is not persuaded by petitioners'
contention that the private respondent is not entitled
to his money claims representing his living allowance,
overtime pay, vacation pay and special allowance as
well as attorney's fees because he failed to present any
proof to show that he is entitled to these awards.
However, the Court finds that the monetary award
representing private respondent's three months salary
as well as the award representing his living allowance,
overtime pay, vacation pay and special allowance
should be modified.
The Court finds no basis in the NLRC's act of including
private respondent's living allowance as part of the
three months salary to which he is entitled under
Section 10 of Republic Act (RA) No. 8042, otherwise

known as the "Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos

Act of 1995." The pertinent provisions of the said Act
provides:
Sec. 10. Money Claims
xxxx
In case of termination of overseas employment without
just, valid or authorized cause as defined by law or
contract, the worker shall be entitled to the full
reimbursement of his placement fee with interest at
twelve percent (12%) per annum, plus his salaries for
the unexpired portion of his employment contract or
for three (3) months for every year of the unexpired
term, whichever is less.
xxxx
It is clear from the above-quoted provision that what is
included in the computation of the amount due to the
overseas worker are only his salaries. Allowances are
excluded. In the present case, since private respondent
received a basic monthly salary of US$400.00, he is,
therefore, entitled to receive a sum of US$1200.00,
representing three months of said salary.
As to the awards of living allowance, overtime pay,
vacation pay and special allowance, it is clearly
provided under private respondent's Contract of
Employment that he is entitled to these benefits as
follows: living allowance of US$140.00/month; vacation
leave with pay equivalent to US$40.00/month;
overtime rate of US$120.00/month; and, special
allowance of US$175.00/month.30
With respect, however, to the award of overtime pay,
the correct criterion in determining whether or not
sailors are entitled to overtime pay is not whether they
were on board and cannot leave ship beyond the
regular eight working hours a day, but whether they
actually rendered service in excess of said number of
hours.31
In the present case, the Court finds that private
respondent is not entitled to overtime pay because he
failed to present any evidence to prove that he
rendered service in excess of the regular eight working
hours a day.
On the basis of the foregoing, the remaining benefits to
which the private respondent is entitled is the living
allowance of US$140.00/month, which was removed in
the computation of private respondent's salary, special
allowance of US$175.00/month and vacation leave with
pay amounting to US$40.00/month. Since private
respondent rendered service for two months these
benefits should be doubled, giving a total of
US$710.00.
As to the award of attorney's fees, this Court ruled
in Reyes v. Court of Appeals,32 as follows:
x x x [T]here are two commonly accepted concepts of
attorney's
fees,
the
so-called
ordinary
and
extraordinary. In its ordinary concept, an attorney's fee
is the reasonable compensation paid to a lawyer by his
client for the legal services he has rendered to the
latter.

The basis of this compensation is the fact of his

employment by and his agreement with the client. In
its extraordinary concept, attorney's fees are deemed
indemnity for damages ordered by the court to be paid
by the losing party in a litigation.
The instances where these may be awarded are those
enumerated in Article 2208 of the Civil Code,
specifically par. 7 thereof which pertains to actions for
recovery of wages, and is payable not to the lawyer but
to the client, unless they have agreed that the award
shall pertain to the lawyer as additional compensation
or as part thereof. The extraordinary concept of
attorney's fees is the one contemplated in Article 111
of the Labor Code, which provides:
Art. 111. Attorney's fees. (a) In cases of unlawful
withholding of wages, the culpable party may be
assessed attorney's fees equivalent to ten percent of
the amount of wages recovered x x x
The afore-quoted Article 111 is an exception to
the declared policy of strict construction in the
awarding of attorney's fees. Although an express
finding of facts and law is still necessary to
prove the merit of the award, there need not be
any showing that the employer acted maliciously
or in bad faith when it withheld the wages. There
need only be a showing that the lawful wages
were not paid accordingly, as in this case.
In carrying out and interpreting the Labor Code's
provisions and its implementing regulations, the
employee's welfare should be the primordial and
paramount consideration.
This kind of interpretation gives meaning and
substance to the liberal and compassionate spirit of the
law as provided in Article 4 of the Labor Code which
states that "[a]ll doubts in the implementation and

interpretation of the provisions of [the Labor] Code

including its implementing rules and regulations, shall
be resolved in favor of labor", and Article 1702 of the
Civil Code which provides that "[i]n case of doubt, all
labor legislation and all labor contracts shall be
construed in favor of the safety and decent living for
the laborer."33 (Emphasis supplied)
In the present case, it is true that the Labor Arbiter and
the NLRC failed to state the reasons why attorney's
fees are being awarded. However, it is clear that
private respondent was illegally terminated from his
employment and that his wages and other benefits
were withheld from him without any valid and legal
basis. As a consequence, he is compelled to file an
action for the recovery of his lawful wages and other
benefits and, in the process, incurred expenses. On
these bases, the Court finds that he is entitled to
attorney's fees.
WHEREFORE, the petition is PARTLY GRANTED. The
Court of Appeals' Decision dated December 18, 2001
and
Resolution
dated
April
10,
2002
are AFFIRMED with MODIFICATION to the effect that
the award of US$1620.00 representing private
respondent's three months salary is reduced to
US$1200.00. The award of US$550.00 representing
private respondent's living allowance, overtime pay,
vacation pay and special allowance for two months is
deleted and in lieu thereof, an award of US$710.00 is
granted representing private respondent's living
allowance, special allowance and vacation leave with
pay for the same period.
No costs.
SO ORDERED.
Ynares-Santiago, (Working Chairperson), Callejo Sr.,
and Chico-Nazario JJ., concur.
Panganiban, C.J., Retired as of December 7, 2006.