SC rules IBC-13 ex-workers be given salary differentials

The Supreme Court has ruled that two former employees of Cebu-based Intercontinental Broadcasting Corporation (IBC-13) are entitled to receive their salary differentials.

The two, office staff Noemi Amarilla and technician Corsino Lagahit, retired from service with the television network eight years ago but it was under optional retirement, which has no tax deductions, and thus they insisted to get their salary differentials.

The SC's first division, presided by Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban, rejected the arguments of IBC-13 lawyers that the network could not be compelled to give to the two workers their salary differentials, amounting to P52,846.

The counsels contended that, based on IBC-13's computation, Amarilla and Lagahit even owed the TV network a much higher amount because the management failed to deduct tax dues from their retirement benefits when they retired on 1998.

The high court found out however that the network did not ask Amarilla and Lagahit for refund of their withholding taxes until the time they demanded for their salary differentials.

After the retirement of Lagahit and Amarilla, the network granted to its employees a P1500 monthly salary increase, which was retroactive to July 1994.

This prompted the two retired employees to demand for salary differentials but the network denied them this contending that such amount would be used to offset the taxes due from their retirement benefits.

Lagahit and Amarilla cried foul and argued that they made use of the optional retirement because of the TV networks's inducement that there would be no tax deductions for such scheme.

"There is no showing that before respondents demanded the payment of their salary differentials, the TV network had rejected its commitment to shoulder the taxes on Amarilla and Lagahit's retirement benefits and sought its nullification before the court," the High Court ruled. - Rene U. Borromeo/RAE