AN ACT STRENGTHENING THE WORKERS'' CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT TO SELF-ORGANIZATION

Case Overview and Summary

Summary of Republic Act No. 9481

Requirements for Registration of Labor Organizations (Section 1):
- Registration fee of P50
- Names and addresses of officers, principal address, organizational meeting minutes, list of participating workers
- For independent unions, names of at least 20% of employees in the bargaining unit
- For existing unions, copies of annual financial reports
- Four copies of constitution, by-laws, ratification minutes, and list of ratifying members

Chartering and Creation of Local Chapters (Section 2):
- Registered federations or national unions can directly create local chapters by issuing a charter certificate
- Local chapters acquire legal personality for filing certification election petitions upon receiving the charter certificate
- For full rights and privileges, local chapters must submit additional documents like officers' names, addresses, constitution, and by-laws

Cancellation of Registration (Sections 3, 5, 6):
- Registration can be cancelled by the Bureau after due hearing on grounds specified in Section 239 (Section 3)
- Grounds for cancellation (Section 5):
    - Misrepresentation, false statement, or fraud in adopting/ratifying constitution, by-laws, amendments, minutes, or member lists
    - Misrepresentation, false statement, or fraud in election of officers, minutes, or voter lists
    - Voluntary dissolution by at least two-thirds of general membership (Section 6)

Effect of Petition for Cancellation (Section 4):
- A petition for cancellation does not suspend certification election proceedings or prevent filing of certification election petitions
- In case of cancellation, the union can seek remedies in appropriate courts

Reportorial Requirements (Section 7):
- Submit constitution, by-laws, amendments, ratification minutes, and member lists within 30 days of adoption/ratification
- Submit list of officers, election minutes, and voter lists within 30 days of election
- Submit annual financial report within 30 days after fiscal year end
- Submit member list at least once a year or as required by the Bureau
- Failure to comply is not a ground for cancellation but may result in suspension, expulsion, or other penalties for erring officers/members

Ineligibility of Managerial Employees and Rights of Supervisory Employees (Section 8):
- Managerial employees cannot join, assist, or form labor organizations
- Supervisory employees cannot join rank-and-file bargaining units but can form their own unions
- Rank-and-file and supervisors' unions in the same establishment can join the same federation or national union

Effect of Including Non-Bargaining Unit Employees (Section 9):
- Including non-bargaining unit employees as union members is not a ground for cancellation of registration
- Such employees are automatically removed from the union's membership list

Representation Issue in Organized Establishments (Section 10):
- Within 60 days before the CBA expiration, a legitimate labor organization can file a verified petition questioning the incumbent bargaining agent's majority status
- The petition must be supported by at least 25% of bargaining unit employees' written consent
- The Med-Arbiter shall order a secret ballot election to determine the exclusive bargaining agent
- A majority of eligible voters must cast votes for a valid election
- The union receiving the majority of valid votes shall be certified as the exclusive bargaining agent
- In case of no majority, a run-off election shall be held between the top two unions if their combined votes are at least 50% of votes cast
- National unions or federations filing petitions need not disclose local chapter officers' and members' names

Petitions in Unorganized Establishments (Section 11):
- In establishments without a certified bargaining agent, the Med-Arbiter shall automatically conduct a certification election upon petition by a legitimate labor organization
- National unions or federations filing petitions need not disclose local chapter officers' and members' names

Employer as Bystander (Section 12):
- In all certification election cases, the employer is not a party and cannot oppose the petition
- The employer's participation is limited to being notified and submitting the employee list during the pre-election conference