Syllabi/Synopsis
SECOND DIVISION
[G.R. No. 127195. August 25, 1999]
MARSAMAN MANNING AGENCY, INC. and DIAMANTIDES MARITIME, INC.,
petitioners, vs. NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS COMMISSION and WILFREDO T.
CAJERAS, respondents.
DECISION
BELLOSILLO, J.:
MARSAMAN MANNING AGENCY, INC. (MARSAMAN) and its foreign principal
DIAMANTIDES MARITIME, INC. (DIAMANTIDES) assail the Decision of public respondent
National Labor Relations Commission dated 16 September 1996 as well as its Resolution dated
12 November 1996 affirming the Labor Arbiter's decision finding them guilty of illegal dismissal
and ordering them to pay respondent Wilfredo T. Cajeras salaries corresponding to the unexpired
portion of his employment contract, plus attorney's fees.
Private respondent Wilfredo T. Cajeras was hired by petitioner MARSAMAN, the local manning
agent of petitioner DIAMANTIDES, as Chief Cook Steward on the MV Prigipos, owned and
operated by DIAMANTIDES, for a contract period of ten (10) months with a monthly salary of
US$600.00, evidenced by a contract between the parties dated 15 June 1995. Cajeras started
work on 8 August 1995 but less than two (2) months later, or on 28 September 1995, he was
repatriated to the Philippines allegedly by mutual consent.
On 17 November 1995 private respondent Cajeras filed a complaint for illegal dismissal against
petitioners with the NLRC National Capital Region Arbitration Branch alleging that he was
dismissed illegally, denying that his repatriation was by mutual consent, and asking for his
unpaid wages, overtime pay, damages, and attorneys fees.i[1] Cajeras alleged that he was
assigned not only as Chief Cook Steward but also as assistant cook and messman in addition to
performing various inventory and requisition jobs. Because of his additional assignments he
began to feel sick just a little over a month on the job constraining him to request for medical
attention. He was refused at first by Capt. Kouvakas Alekos, master of the MV Prigipos, who just
ordered him to continue working. However a day after the ships arrival at the port of Rotterdam,
Holland, on 26 September 1995 Capt. Alekos relented and had him examined at the Medical
Center for Seamen. However, the examining physician, Dr. Wden Hoed, neither apprised private
respondent about the diagnosis nor issued the requested medical certificate allegedly because he
himself would forward the results to private respondents superiors. Upon returning to the vessel,
private respondent was unceremoniously ordered to prepare for immediate repatriation the
following day as he was said to be suffering from a disease of unknown origin.
On 28 September 1995 he was handed his Seaman's Service Record Book with the following
entry: "Cause of discharge - Mutual Consent."ii[2] Private respondent promptly objected to the