Dear PAO,
I am a teacher in a private school. While preparing for her wedding, my co-teacher became pregnant by her boyfriend. She admitted the relationship, and the school suspended her indefinitely without pay before her pregnancy became visibly noticeable. After two months, she got married as planned. When the school learned about this, it issued return-to-work orders to her, but she refused to comply. Consequently, the school terminated her employment. Was the school justified in suspending and subsequently terminating my co-teacher?
-Gracia
Dear Gracia,
In Bohol Wisdom School, Dr. Simplicio Yap, Jr., and Raul H. Deloso v. Miraflor Mabao (GR 252124, July 23, 2024), the Supreme Court, speaking through Associate Justice Ricardo Rosario, ruled that sexual intercourse between two consenting adults who are without any legal impediment to marry is not considered immoral. The Court explained that no law proscribes such conduct, nor does it contravene any fundamental state policy enshrined in the Constitution. Thus, the act of engaging in premarital sexual relations with a boyfriend, even if resulting in pregnancy, cannot be deemed disgraceful or immoral within the contemplation of the law.
The high court further clarified that the applicable standard of immorality is public and secular, rather than religious. Whether an act may be considered disgraceful or immoral must be measured against prevailing norms of conduct that society proscribes because such acts are detrimental to the conditions upon which its existence and progress depend. The Court held that the mere fact that a particular act runs contrary to the traditional moral views of a sectarian institution does not suffice to render it immoral in law, unless it is also inconsistent with public and secular standards. Moreover, substantial evidence is required to prove that premarital sexual relations and pregnancy out of wedlock are indeed considered disgraceful or immoral under such standards.
Applying this doctrine to the present case, it is evident that the school has no legal basis to impose suspension upon your co-teacher for having engaged in premarital sexual relations with her boyfriend, even if it resulted in pregnancy, there being no legal impediment for both of them to get married. Furthermore, the indefinite suspension without pay is unlawful, as the same is not allowed under our labor law. Consequently, since the suspension of your co-teacher is illegal, she may file an action for illegal suspension before the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC).
However, as to her termination, the school may validly terminate your co-teacher for abandonment. Despite the receipt and knowledge of the return-to-work notices to her, your co-worker failed to return to work. Hence, her act of not reporting back to school despite notices shows your co-teacher’s clear intention to sever her employment with the school.
We hope that we were able to answer your queries. This advice was based solely on the facts you have narrated and our appreciation of the same. Our opinion may vary when other facts are changed or elaborated.
Thank you for your continued trust and support.
Editor’s note: Dear PAO is a daily column of the Public Attorney’s Office. Questions for Chief Acosta may be sent to dearpao@manilatimes.net
