"x x x.
The Court is of the considerable view that on Javier lies the burden to pass the well-settled tests to determine the existence of an employer-employee relationship, viz: (1) the selection and engagement of the employee; (2) the payment of wages; (3) the power of dismissal; and (4) the power to control the employee’s conduct. Of these elements, the most important criterion is whether the employer controls or has reserved the right to control the employee not only as to the result of the work but also as to the means and methods by which the result is to be accomplished.[35]
In this case, Javier was not able to persuade the Court that the above elements exist in his case. He could not submit competent proof that Fly Ace engaged his services as a regular employee; that Fly Ace paid his wages as an employee, or that Fly Ace could dictate what his conduct should be while at work. In other words, Javier’s allegations did not establish that his relationship with Fly Ace had the attributes of an employer-employee relationship on the basis of the above-mentioned four-fold test. Worse, Javier was not able to refute Fly Ace’s assertion that it had an agreement with a hauling company to undertake the delivery of its goods. It was also baffling to realize that Javier did not dispute Fly Ace’s denial of his services’ exclusivity to the company. In short, all that Javier laid down were bare allegations without corroborative proof.
Fly Ace does not dispute having contracted Javier and paid him on a “per trip” rate as a stevedore, albeit on a pakyaw basis. The Court cannot fail to note that Fly Ace presented documentary proof that Javier was indeed paid on a pakyaw basis per the acknowledgment receipts admitted as competent evidence by the LA. Unfortunately for Javier, his mere denial of the signatures affixed therein cannot automatically sway us to ignore the documents because “forgery cannot be presumed and must be proved by clear, positive and convincing evidence and the burden of proof lies on the party alleging forgery.”[36]
Considering the above findings, the Court does not see the necessity to resolve the second issue presented.
One final note. The Court’s decision does not contradict the settled rule that “payment by the piece is just a method of compensation and does not define the essence of the relation.”[37] Payment on a piece-rate basis does not negate regular employment. “The term ‘wage’ is broadly defined in Article 97 of the Labor Code as remuneration or earnings, capable of being expressed in terms of money whether fixed or ascertained on a time, task, piece or commission basis. Payment by the piece is just a method of compensation and does not define the essence of the relations. Nor does the fact that the petitioner is not covered by the SSS affect the employer-employee relationship. However, in determining whether the relationship is that of employer and employee or one of an independent contractor, each case must be determined on its own facts and all the features of the relationship are to be considered.”[38] Unfortunately for Javier, the attendant facts and circumstances of the instant case do not provide the Court with sufficient reason to uphold his claimed status as employee of Fly Ace.
