Dismissal Due to Insubordination

I am a Supervisor from one of the biggest call centers in the Philippines. I have been with the company for more than 11 years now. I, along with a couple of my fellow Supervisors, have been threatened with dismissal for refusing to acknowledge a policy rolled out by top management. Said policy states that we be held liable for every violation an agent commits on a particular guideline. This is without regard for the root cause of the violation but as the Supervisor of the guilty agent, we are automatically a party to the said infraction and might also be dismissed given a certain total number of violations from our team. Does our case have merit as we plan to file case with NLRC in case we get terminated for insubordination?

they are threatening you with dismissal because you won't sign that you accept the new policy?

Yes lukekyle. Me and 2 other Supervisors.

you do realize that whether you acknowledge it or not, the fact that your employer has already informed you of said policy, then it is already in place.  

Whether or not the policy can be questioned is not affected by your "acknowledgment"

in my opinion that would be illegal dismissal. If i were them, i would just carry out said policy and terminate you based on the new metrics that they issued. I dont find it unreasonable that as supervisors the performance or violations of the group you supervise be considered your own

Point taken. Not unreasonable but debatable depending on the circumstances. There are certain things one cannot control.

yes that is true.  In my opinion you guys are just creating unnecessary friction between yourselves and top management. Whether you acknowledge it or not, if unreasonable yung circumstances then you can still complain if na dismiss ka because of it.

If that is the case Sir LukeKyle, why do you think they are pressuring us to acknowledge, if it doesn't really matter if we do or do not. Will we not have a better case, if we had already initially objected to it via refusing to acknowledge, prior to it's effectivity? What is the importance of acknowledgement anyway?

what exactly do you mean by acknowledge ba? are they asking you to read it out loud while being videotaped?
are they merely asking you to signify that nabasa nyo yung memo and are aware of the said policy?

Christian,

Who is pressuring you to acknowledge the memo? anyway, usually its for documentation purpose that the you have read, become aware and understand the new policy. It doesn't matter if you agree with it or not. The reason that they are pressuring you is because they need to report to the upper management that they have disseminated the policy to everyone.

Btw, if you refuse "acknowledging" the policy, it could lead to a more serious consequences.

It is a management prerogative. From time to time employer needs to revised or add up certain new policies.

My take on it Sir LukeKyle is that they think that acknowledging that I have read it is equivalent to agreeing with it that's why they are so keen on having us acknowledge the policy.

@ Mikos, our managers are pressuring us to acknowledge. There's even a deadline for the acknowledgement.

@Mikos, LukeKyle, cc-m
Sirs, just want to clarify this. So legally, acknowledging does not necessarily mean that we are agreeing to a certain policy. It just means that we have been made aware and we understand the policy. This cannot be held against us when we file a complaint (in case we get terminated as per conditions of the policy) using the argument that since we have "acknowledged" the policy then we "agree" to it.
This is how the people at my office see it. Even the managers.

they are not asking you to agree.. all they are asking is for you to acknowledged that you have received/read the memo.

Just recalled, does it make any difference if the communication has a header, Statement of Undertaking ?

yes there is a difference. Statement of undertaking is a letter with an assurance that you will fulfill an obligation that you agreed on, which is stated in the letter.

it is much like a conforme, you will conform with what is stated on what you signed.

so once you signed / acknowledge this you agree to it.

Now lets look at it this way, making and issuing a policy is management prerogative. You as a supervisor, no matter if you agree to it or not, are bound to implement it. if you signed it, there will be no problem. but if you don't sign it, it will send a wrong signal to management that you oppose to them. Better think about this cause this will affect your career in that company.

Now, another way to look at it. The policy they are releasing is not something new.
You as a supervisor is a part of managerial employee. It is inherent to a supervisor, to be responsible to people in those care. You are there to supervise their work and implement management decision. Your staff are your responsibility and what ever happens you are also part to blame if anything goes wrong because they are your responsibility.

think of it this way, if the policy is fair or reasonable or lawful, even if youboppose it you will still be bound by it. if it is unlawful or judeged to be oppressive even if you “agree” with it you can still complain. if all else fails try to get DOLE’s opinion on the particular policy. but in my opinion you are creating problems where there need not be any.
just wait till there is a specific case where you are dismissed unfairly because of this policy then file a complaint

Thank you for the advice everyone

Don't forget to drop by here again, and let us know how it turns out.

Cheers!

Read this, bro. Just for your own consumption. https://www.alburovillanueva.com/dismissal-termination-employment

Thanks Sir Arnold!
Update: I was formally charged with Insubordination and Breach of Trust two weeks ago. There were two of us who were charged. NTEs were submitted and disciplinary hearings were held last week. We are still waiting for the results.