7/7/2021 E-Library - Information At Your Fingertips: Printer Friendly SECTION 8. Disease as a ground for dismissal. — Where the employee suffers from a disease and his continued employment is prohibited by law or prejudicial to his health or to the health of his co-employees, the employer shall not terminate his employment unless there is a certification by competent public health authority that the disease is of such nature of at such a stage that it cannot be cured within a period of six (6) months even with proper medical treatment. If the disease or ailment can be cured within the period, the employer shall not terminate the employee but shall ask the employee to take a leave of absence. The employer shall reinstate such employee to his former position immediately upon the restoration of his normal health.[34] In a bundle of cases,[35] We have held that for a dismissal on the ground of disease to be considered valid, two requisites must concur: (a) the employee suffers from a disease which cannot be cured within six months and his/her continued employment is prohibited by law or prejudicial to his/her health or to the health of his/her coemployees, and (b) a certification to that effect must be issued by a competent public health authority. In the instant case, petitioners did not comply with the foregoing requirements to justify Mesina's termination on the ground of a disease. We note that MAZCO repatriated Mesina to the Philippines without any showing that he had a prolonged and permanent disease. Furthermore, Mesina's Medical Reports[36] established that he was first confined on February 11, 2006 due to acute retrostemal chest pain and upon his discharge on February 14, 2006, he was "in good general condition with an advice to [undergo] a percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for further evaluation and management". Similarly, during his second confinement on February 18, 2006 due to left sided precordial pain on his left shoulder and forearm, his February 20, 2006 Medical Report indicated that "[t]he patient was admitted in the hospital under observation with follow up ECG & cardiac enzymes. ECG showed no new changes. The cardiac enzymes were within normal range. He was given a strong analgesic & the specific treatment & was discharged on 19.02.06 with an advice for urgent PCI for more evaluation. . . ,"[37] Thus, when Mesina was repatriated on February 21, 2006, none of his medical records showed that his ailment was permanent or that he suffered from a disease which could not be cured within six months and that his continued employment was prohibited by law or prejudicial to his health or to the health of his co-employees. This is validated by the absence of the required Certification from a competent public authority certifying to such a health condition on his part. The CA therefore properly held that petitioners failed to comply with the provisions of Mesina's Employment Agreement/Contract, and with the provisions of Article 284 of the Labor Code and Section 8, Rule I of the Omnibus Rules Implementing the Labor Code. Had they done so, Mesina's Ischaemic Heart Disease could have been considered as an authorized cause for his dismissal.[38] Petitioners further assert that Mesina could not have acquired his ailment during his 9https://elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph/thebookshelf/showdocsfriendly/1/66825 5/9