THE Supreme Court (SC) has reversed the earlier rulings of the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) and the Court of Appeals (CA) and awarded a seaman disability benefits over a blood disease contracted at work.
The Supreme Court Third Division, in a decision promulgated on May 22 and published on Monday, overruled the NLRC and CA in finding seafarer Rudy T. Ampolitod to have been exposed to chemicals while working onboard a ship, leading him to develop Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS), which rendered him unable to produce healthy blood cells.
The overturned rulings had cast doubt on whether Mr. Ampolitod had been exposed to the chemicals long enough to develop MDS.
“We do not agree,” the court said in a 17-page decision written by Associate Justice Samuel H. Gaerlan.
“In the case of Ampolitod, he was hired as an Able Seaman tasked with overhauling, maintaining equipment, as well as chipping rust and painting ship… From the nature of his work, Ampolitod’s duties clearly exposed him to various industrial solvents, cleaning agents, and chemicals,” the court added.
The top court ordered Mr. Ampolitod’s employers to pay a $60,000 permanent disability benefit and legal fees of $6,000. — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio
