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716 Phil. 693
FIRST DIVISION
[ G.R. No. 188595, August 28, 2013 ]
SEA POWER SHIPPING ENTERPRISES, INC., AND/OR BULK
CARRIERS LIMITED AND SPECIAL MARITIME ENTERPRISES, AND
M/V MAGELLAN, PETITIONERS, VS. NENITA P. SALAZAR, ON
BEHALF OF DECEASED ARMANDO L. SALAZAR, RESPONDENT.
DECISION
SERENO, C.J.:
Before this Court is a Rule 45 petition,[1] seeking a reversal of the Court of Appeals
(CA) Decision[2] and Resolution[3] in CA-G.R. SP No. 104593. The CA awarded death
benefits, minor child's allowance and burial expenses on top of the sickness allowance,
hospitalization expenses, moral damages, and attorney's fees granted by the National
Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) to respondent Nenita P. Salazar (Salazar) as the
beneficiary of the deceased seafarer, Armando L. Salazar (Armando).
The antecedent facts are as follows:
On 11 April 2003, Armando was employed[4] as an Able Seaman by petitioner Sea
Power Shipping Enterprises, Inc. (agency) on behalf of its principal, Atlantic Bulk
Carriers Limited, for a term of nine months plus a three month-consented extension. At
the time of his employment, he had already passed his pre-employment medical
examination and had been declared “fit to work.”
On 20 April 2003, Armando boarded the M/V Magellan. After 17 months, his contract
ended, and on 8 September 2004, he returned to our shores.[5] Two days after, he was
taken to the Tanza Family General Hospital, where he was confined in the Intensive
Care Unit (ICU) for three days. According to medical reports, he suffered from
pneumonia.
Because of his confinement, Armando was unable to see the agency’s physician for a
post-employment medical examination (PEME) that was supposed to be conducted
within 72 hours from his repatriation. Nevertheless, on the 7th or 8th day of Armando’s
confinement, Salazar informed petitioners of her husband’s condition and even asked
them for the insurance proceeds. The agency denied her claims. It reasoned that
without the requisite PEME required by the 2005 Philippine Overseas Employment
Administration Standard Employment Contract for Seafarers (POEA Contract), his
beneficiaries could not avail themselves of the sickness allowance.
Armando checked in and out of several hospitals thereafter. At the Philippine General
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