4 St. James School of Quezon City v. Samahang Mangagawa sa St.
It
James School of Quezon City.
G.R. No. 151326 November 23, 2005
Doctrine
Facts
1. The Union filed a petition for certification election to determine
the collective bargaining representative of the motor pool,
construction and transportation employees the St. James.
2. The certification election was held wherein 84 out of eligible
139 voters cast their votes.
3. St. James alleged that it had 179 rank-and-file employees and
none of them voted in the aforementioned certification election.
The school also argues that the 84 voters were not its regular
employees but construction workers of an independent
contractor of the school.
4. Med-Arbiter ruled in favor the school. Held that the 84 voters
were not anymore workers of St. James as evidenced by the
roster of rank-and-file employees submitted by it because
names of those 84 voters do not appear in the roster.
5. SOLE Reversed Med-Arbiter. Held that the union only seeks to
represent the motor pool, construction and transportation
departments and not all the rank and file employees of the
school. The roster/list submitted by the school only contained
the administrative, teaching and office personnel of the school.
6. CA affirmed SOLE.
1. Hence this petition where the school argues that that the
certification election was conducted without a quorum saying
that the 179 rank and file employees of the school did not take
part in the certification election as they were on duty at the time
and that the 84 employees who indeed voted were not the
school’s employees but that of its independent contractor.
also alleges that it has 570 rank and file employees across its 5
campuses so that even if the 84 who voted are to be considered
as employees of the school, it will not constitute the required
majority vote required by the Labor Code.
Issue
1. W/N The formation of the labor union is valid-YES
2. W/N the Certification Election is valid -YES
Held
2. 1st Issue: Prior to the holding of the certification election, The
school filed a petition to cancel the union’s registration of the
ground of lack of EE-ER relationship as its employees are
construction workers of an independent contractor of the
school. This became the subject of another case wherein the
Supreme Court therein ruled with finality that the said
employees are employees of the school
3. 2nd. Issue: Validity of the Certification Election is premised
upon compliance with Section 13, Rule XII1, Book of the
1
Section 13, Rule XII, Book V of the Omnibus Rules Implementing the
Labor Code ("Omnibus Rules") provides:
Section 13. Proclamation and certification of results by election officer;
when proper. – Upon completion of the canvass there being a valid election,
the election officer shall proclaim and certify as winner the union which
obtained a majority of the valid votes cast under any of the following
conditions:
a) No protest had been filed or, even if one was filed, the same was not
perfected within the five-day period for perfection of the protest;
 Omnibus Rules. With respect to the school’s allegations, the
members of the union in this case were from its Tandang Sora
Campus and according to its by-laws and constitution, it only
seeks to represent the motor pool, transportation and
construction employees of the said campus. Within that
department in the Tandang Sora Campus, there are only 149
qualified voters, and since 84 of them voted, there is a quorum.

b) No challenge of eligibility issue was raised or even if one was raised, the
resolution of the same will not materially change the result.

For this purpose, the election officer shall immediately issue the
corresponding certification; copy furnished all parties, which shall form part
of the records of the case. The winning union shall have the rights,
privileges and obligations of a duly certified collective bargaining
representative from the time the certification is issued. The proclamation
and certification so issued shall not be appealable.