Dear Atty.,
My cousin was employed by a five-star hotel as a service agent. She was last assigned at the hotel’s restaurant and her tasks included assisting in the serving of food and beverages to the restaurant’s guests.
Two incidents happened leading to my cousin’s suspension. The first incident happened when she impolitely responded to a guest. The second subject incident occurred when she allegedly exhibited a behavior not inimical to the hotel’s image wherein, she disrespected, showed discourtesy to guests.
Was her suspension valid based on the facts above? Hope you can enlighten us in this matter.
Sheila
*****
Dear Sheila,
Based on the facts you presented, I would say that your cousin’s suspension is valid.
To give you a better understanding, under the doctrine of management prerogative, every employer has the inherent right to regulate, according to his own discretion and judgment, all aspects of employment, including hiring, work assignments, working methods, the time, place and manner of work, work supervision, transfer of employees, lay-off of workers, and discipline, dismissal, and recall of employees (Peckson v Robinsons Supermarket, G.R. 198534, 3 July 2013). Further, the employer’s right to discipline, in general, is the prerogative of the employer to discipline its employees and to impose appropriate penalties on erring workers pursuant to company rules and regulations
In the case of The Heritage Hotel, Manila v Sio, G.R. 217896; 26 June 2019, the Supreme Court ruled:
“It is axiomatic that appropriate disciplinary sanction is within the purview of management imposition. What should not be overlooked is the prerogative of an employer company to prescribe reasonable rules and regulations necessary for the proper conduct of its business and to provide certain disciplinary measures in order to implement said rules to assure that the same would be complied with. An employer has a free reign and enjoys wide latitude of discretion to regulate all aspects of employment, including the prerogative to instill discipline in its employees and to impose penalties, including dismissal, upon erring employees. In sum, so long as there is substantial evidence to show that the employee was guilty of the charges against her and was afforded procedural due process, the act of the company of imposing upon her the penalties of suspension was a valid exercise of an employer’s management prerogative.”
From the foregoing, the penalties of suspension imposed upon your cousin seems to be without valid bases and were reasonably proportionate to the infractions committed. The improper remarks hurled against valued guests and acts exhibiting a behavior not inimical to the hotel’s image wherein, she disrespected, showed discourtesy to guests, in the present case, pose a greater threat to the interest of an employer and all the more merits a similar, if not graver, penalty.
Hope to have enlightened you in this matter.
Atty. Joji Alonso