company forcing employee to sign quitclaim

Good Day!
My mom have been working in a construction firm for about 14 years now. And yesterday she was shocked when she was informed that she needs to sign a quitclaim and clearance because their payroll will charged to a different project site but still under the same company. This is not the first time that the charging will be transferred however this is the first time that she was asked to file a clearance and sign the quitclaim. I was on the web the whole day to find the answer if it is legal or not. Because she was informed today that if she will not sign those papers, she will lose her job effective immediately. My mom did not sign the papers and now she was informed that she no longer need to report to work but they did not give any written doc regarding that. And she was given until Sunday to leave the staff house.  I don't think that's fair. And just to add up, for 14 years that she had been on that company, she was never regularized and kept on signing a "monthly contract", I am not even sure if our law permits that. Are there any legal actions that we can do?

Thank you so much for your time, any advice will be much appreciated.
Hoping for your kind response.

1. your mother should be considered as a Regular Employee even if the company continuously oblige her to sign a contract

2. Your mother can file for constructive dismissal

may I please know how and where to file constructive dismissal? what does it mean?

File a complaint with the Regional Arbitration Branch having jurisdiction over the workplace of your mother.


(2011 NLRC RULES OF PROCEDURE)
Labor Arbiters shall have
original and exclusive jurisdiction to hear and decide the following cases involving all
workers, whether agricultural or non-agricultural:
a) Unfair labor practice cases;
b) Termination disputes;
c) If accompanied with a claim for reinstatement, those cases that workers may
file involving wages, rates of pay, hours of work and other terms and conditions of
employment;
d) Claims for actual, moral, exemplary and other forms of damages arising from
employer-employee relations;
e) Cases arising from any violation of Article 264 of the Labor Code, as
amended, including questions involving the legality of strikes and lockouts;
f)Except claims for employees compensation not included in the next
succeeding paragraph, social security, medicare, and maternity benefits, all other
claims arising from employer-employee relations, including those of persons in
domestic or household service, involving an amount exceeding Five Thousand Pesos
(P5,000.00), whether or not accompanied with a claim for reinstatement;
g) Wage distortion disputes in unorganized establishments not voluntarily
settled by the parties pursuant to Republic Act No. 6727;
h) Enforcement of compromise agreements when there is non-compliance by
any of the parties pursuant to Article 227 of the Labor Code, as amended;
i) Money claims arising out of employer-employee relationship or by virtue of
any law or contract, involving Filipino workers for overseas deployment, including
claims for actual, moral, exemplary and other forms of damages as provided by
Section 10 of RA 8042, as amended by RA 10022; and
j) Other cases as may be provided by law.
Cases arising from the interpretation or implementation of collective bargaining
agreements and those arising from the interpretation or enforcement of company
personnel policies shall be disposed of by the Labor Arbiter by referring the same to the
grievance machinery and voluntary arbitration, as may be provided in said agreements.

thank u so much for all those information. we already went to nlrc last week and filed a complaint. we are advised to return om the 14th for the hearing. is there anything else that we need to prepare?

Prepare your mom's employment contract, payslips, any proof that she was employed for 14 years, and any proof that she was dismissed from employment. You might not need this yet but better be prepared. These documents are important, never loose them or give them up. Advice your mom not to resign or sign any document to that effect.

The first 2 hearings are like negotiations or dialogues between your mom and her employer.

Atty, my mom still have all the docs you mentioned aside from a written proof that she was dismissed from employment because the company said that they will not release any termination nor thank you letter since it is my mom's choice not to sign the contract for that month. When we talked to the company's lawyer on our first hearing, she said that what they did to my mom is legal since my mom is just a contract/project based employee. And she also mentioned that my mom cannot be considered as regular employee even she has been with the company for years because the rules in a construction firm is different from the labor code of a regular company. Please enlighten me, is that true? Is it true that my mom cannot win this case because rules for construction company is different? And also since my mom is assigned at the warehouse office and not for any project, is it still considered as a project based employment? The company is insisting that what they did was fair. They are asking my mom to just go back to work but still under the same condition that she has to sign the clearance and the quitclaim first before she can sign the contract. We are not sure if we can win this but my mom decided not to go back to that company since they said that her 14years of service is nothing and has no bearing.