Labor Law Random Bar Questions

Labor Law Question #5 (2018)

Nelda worked as a chambermaid in Hotel Neverland with a basic wage of PhP560.00 for
an eight-hour workday. On Good Friday, she worked for one (1) hour from 10:00 PM to
11:00 PM. Her employer paid her only PhP480.00 for each 8-hour workday, and
PhP70.00 for the work done on Good Friday. She sued for underpayment of wages and
non-payment of holiday pay and night shift differential pay for working on a Good
Friday. Hotel Neverland denied the alleged underpayment, arguing that based on
long-standing unwritten tradition, food and lodging costs were partially shouldered
by the employer and partially paid for by the employee through salary deduction.
According to the employer, such valid deduction caused the payment of Nelda�s wage
to be below the prescribed minimum. The hotel also claimed that she was not
entitled to holiday pay and night shift differential pay because hotel workers have
to work on holidays and may be assigned to work at night.

(a) Does the hotel have valid legal grounds to deduct food and lodging costs from
Nelda�s basic salary? (2.5%)

(b) Applying labor standards law, how much should Nelda be paid for work done on
Good Friday? Show the computation in your test booklet and encircle your final
answer. (2.5%)

Labor Law Question #12 (2019)

Due to serious business reverses, ABC Co. decided to terminate the services of
several officers receiving �fat� compensation packages. One of these officers was
Mr. X, its Vice-President for External Affairs and a member of the Board of
Directors. Aggrieved, Mr. X filed a complaint for illegal dismissal before the
National labor Relations Commission (NLRC) � Regional Arbitration Branch.

ABC Co. moved for the dismissal of the case on the ground of lack of jurisdiction,
asserting that since Mr. X occupied the position of Vice-President for External
Affairs which is listed in the by-laws of the corporation, the case should have
been tiled before the Regional Trial Court.

The Labor Arbiter (LA) denied ABC Co.�s motion and proceeded to rule that Mr. X was
illegally dismissed. Hence, he was reinstated in ABC Co.�s payroll pending its
appeal to the NLRC.

(a) Did the LA err in denying ABC Co.�s motion to dismiss on the ground of lack of
jurisdiction? Explain. (2.5%)

(b) Assuming the LA�s ruling of illegal dismissal with finality, may ABC Co. claim
reimbursement for the amounts it paid to Mr. X during the time that he was on
payroll reinstatement pending appeal? Explain. (2.5%)

Labor Law Question #3 (2015)

Benito is the owner of an eponymous clothing brand that is a top seller. He employs
a number of male and female models who wear Benito�s clothes in promotional shoots
and videos. His deal with the models is that Benito will pay them with 3 sets of
free clothes per week. Is this arrangement allowed? (2%)

Labor Law Question #5 (2012)

The weekly work schedule of a driver is as follows: Monday, Wednesday, Friday �

drive the family car to bring and fetch the children to and from school. Tuesday,
Thursday, Saturday � drive the family van to fetch merchandise from suppliers and
deliver the same to a boutique in a mall owned by the family.

A. Is the driver a house helper? (5%)

B. The same driver claims that for work performed on Tuesday, Thursday and
Saturday, he should be paid the minimum daily wage of a driver of a commercial
establishment. Is the claim of the driver valid? (5%)

Labor Law Question #8 (2015)

Star Crafts is a lantern maker based in Pampanga. It supplies Christmas lanterns to

stores in Luzon, Metro Manila, and parts of Visayas, with the months of August to
November being the busiest months. Its factory employs a workforce of 2,000 workers
who make different lanterns daily for the whole year. Because of increased demand,
Star Crafts entered into a contractual arrangement with People Plus, a service
contractor, to supply the former with 100 workers for only 4 months, August to
November, at a rate different from what they pay their regular employees. The
contract with People Plus stipulates that all equipment and raw materials will be
supplied by Star Crafts with the express condition that the workers cannot take any
of the designs home and must complete their tasks within the premises of Star
Crafts.

Is there an employer-employee relationship between Star Crafts and the 100 workers
from People Plus? Explain. (4%)