FACTS:

Jorge R. Trinidad filed a complaint for illegal dismissal and unpaid benefits against William Uy Construction Corporation, claiming that he had been working with the company for 16 years as a project employee. Trinidad alleged that he had always been assigned to work on one project after another with some intervals. He further alleged that the company terminated him from work in December 2004 and did not hire him back for another project in Batangas. The company argued that employment intervals were inherent in the construction business and that Trinidad's work ended when a specific project was completed.

ISSUES:

1. The main issue in the case is whether the repeated rehiring of project employees in different projects automatically entitles them to the status of regular employees.

RULING:

1. The Court held that Trinidad remained a project employee despite being repeatedly rehired for different projects. The test to distinguish between a project employee and a regular employee is whether the employee has been assigned to carry out a specific project or undertaking. In this case, Trinidad was contracted for specific projects with the duration of his work clearly stated in his employment contracts. Even though he had worked for the company for 16 years in various projects, the nature of the construction industry and the uncertainty of obtaining projects prevent the application of the length of service as a standard for regularization. The Court cited the case of Caseres v. Universal Robina Sugar Milling Corporation, which held that repeated and successive rehiring of project employees does not qualify them as regular employees. Therefore, Trinidad was not illegally dismissed but rather his employment simply ended with the completion of the project for which he was hired.

PRINCIPLES:

The distinction between a project employee and a regular employee lies in whether the employee has been assigned to carry out a specific project or undertaking, with the duration and scope of engagement specified at the time of hiring. Length of service is not the controlling determinant for project employees in the construction industry. Repeated rehiring of project employees does not automatically entitle them to the status of regular employees. The nature of the construction industry, where work depends on decisions and resources of project proponents or owners, prevents construction companies from guaranteeing work and funding beyond the completion of each project.