Due process requirements in labor cases

The law so requires, as a vital component of due process, an observance of the twin requirements of notice and hearing before the dismissal of an employee. The Court has once said: "On the issue of due process x x x, the law requires the employer to furnish the worker whose employment is sought to be terminated a written notice containing a statement of the cause or causes for termination and shall afford him ample opportunity to be heard and to defend himself with the assistance of a representative. Specifically, the employer must furnish the worker with two (2) written notices before termination of employment can be legally effected: (a) notice which apprises the employee of the particular acts or omissions for which his dismissal is sought; and (b) the subsequent notice which informs the employee of the employer's decision to dismiss him." [G.R. No. 105396. November 19, 1996]