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742 PHIL. 377
SECOND DIVISION
[ G.R. No. 204233, September 03, 2014 ]
RICARDO A. DALUSONG, PETITIONER, VS. EAGLE CLARC SHIPPING
PHILIPPINES, INC., NORFIELD OFFSHORE AS, AND/OR CAPT.
LEOPOLDO T. ARCILLAR, AND COURT OF APPEALS, RESPONDENTS.
DECISION
CARPIO, ACTING C.J.:
The Case
This petition for review[1] assails the 29 June 2012 Decision[2] and the 26 September
2012 Resolution[3] of the Court of Appeals in CA-G.R. SP No. 123767. The Court of
Appeals nullified the Decision[4] dated 12 August 2011 and the Resolution (sic) dated
25 October 2011 of the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) in NLRC LAC No.
05-000397-11, and reinstated the Labor Arbiter’s assignment of grade 11 disability to
petitioner.
The Facts
Private respondents hired petitioner as Able Seaman on board their vessel MV Malene
Ostervold with a basic salary of US$800 per month. The duration of the contract of
employment was for 2½ months.[5] Petitioner boarded the vessel on 18 November
2009. On 13 December 2009, while petitioner was drilling to attach an overboard safety
equipment on the vessel, a sudden swell caused some movement of the vessel. As a
result, one of the crew fell directly on petitioner, inflicting injury on petitioner’s right
foot. Petitioner was brought to the St. Joseph Medical Center in Houston, Texas, where
he was diagnosed with fractured ankle and his foot was placed in cast. On 23 December
2009, petitioner was repatriated to the Philippines for further examination and medical
treatment.
Upon arrival in Manila, petitioner was referred by private respondents to the NGC
Medical Specialist Clinic, Inc. where his cast was removed after a month. Petitioner
then underwent physical therapy until April 2010. On 14 May 2010, Dr. Nicomedes
Cruz, the company-designated doctor, gave petitioner an interim disability grading
based on the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) schedule of
disability of “grade 8 that is moderate rigidity or one third loss of motion or lifting
power of the trunk.”[6] Upon further rehabilitation, petitioner’s condition improved. On
27 July 2010, the company-designated doctor issued a final disability grading under the
POEA schedule of disability of “grade 11 - complete immobility of an ankle joint in
normal position.”[7] Petitioner disagreed with the disability assessment and consulted
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