ANGELES CITY – The owner of the collapsed 9-storey building here has filed a Motion for Reconsideration before the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), arguing that DOLE erred in ordering him to pay ₱11,426,798.50 in unpaid wages and administrative fines to construction workers affected by the work stoppage from September 27 to October 24, 2025.
Atty. Willie Rivera, counsel for building owner Jackson Lim, said he was hoping his client will be given “due process,” as he “was never informed of the specific charges against him, was never furnished the evidence relied upon in the DOLE Order, and was never afforded a meaningful opportunity to submit an answer, position paper, or controverting evidence.”
Rivera also said there is no employer-employee relationship between his client and the affected workers because they were hired by the contractor.
He further said the DOLE Order “failed to disclose any competent evidence establishing entitlement to the alleged wages, holiday pay, and rest day premiums awarded therein.”
He is urging DOLE to “reconsider, set aside, or vacate” its order directing his client to pay unpaid wages and administrative fines.
On June 16, 2026, DOLE directed Lim, and the contractor Golden Years Construction and Steelworks Corporation, to pay unpaid wages amounting to ₱1,102,798.50 to 57 to construction workers affected by the said work stoppage.
The respondents were also directed to pay administrative fines amounting to ₱10,324,000 for violations of Occupational Safety and Health Standards.
This, despite the fact that DOLE III Regional Director Geraldine M. Panlilio issued a resolution on October 24, 2025, stating the contractor had already corrected the violations.
In the DOLE Resolution, Director Panlilio noted the Golden Years introduced corrective actions such as the provision of personal protective equipment, safety belts, lifelines for work on height, safety nets surrounding the construction site, erection of appropriate scaffolds, reconditioning of construction materials, observance of good housekeeping, installation of safety signages, provision of hygienic temporary accommodation and welfare facilities, payment of administrative fine of ₱100,000, and payment of ₱275,000 representing 13th month pay for year 2023 and 2024, incentive leave pay to 12 affected workers, and payment of ₱128,700 representing salaries of 13 affected workers during the work stoppage.
DOLE Region III has lifted the work stoppage on October 24, 2025, after “confirming all documentary evidence of compliance and corrective actions taken by Golden Years Construction and Steel Corporation, and considering that the establishment complied with the conditions set forth for the removal of imminent danger.”
Meanwhile, an occupational safety and health officer earlier said that the integrity of any structure being built depends heavily on contractors for they are the experts “entirely responsible” for converting project plans into reality.
Choi Cruz, a Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) occupational safety and health consultant, said, “Structural integrity does not rely solely on the contractor, though they bear the heaviest burden for physical execution.”
He said a contractor’s great degree of influence on the quality of the structure are on execution, workmanship, and subcontracting oversight.
“The contractor is responsible for turning paper concepts into physical reality, ensuring concrete is mixed, poured, and cured correctly, and managing specialized trades (plumbers, electricians) to avoid structural damage during installation,” he explained.
Architects and engineers also have roles to play in building structures, such as defining structural boundaries and establishing the project’s safety baseline, which the contractor must follow.
He likewise said that “ensuring the correct materials are used is a shared, multi-tiered process of checks and balances.”
However, the primary responsibility on this matter lies with the contractor, and secondary, with the engineers, he added.On the matter of managing construction workers/employees, including their well-being, as well as compliance with the Building Code and Labor safety rules, Cruz said these are the contractor’s main responsibilities.
“The contractor is legally and operationally primary in-charge of workforce management and site safety,” he pointed out.
“When an owner hires a general contractor, they typically pass site control to them via contract. The contractor is legally responsible for Labor Rules, Site Safety, and Building Code Execution,” he added.
Cruz further explained that the property owner cannot be held responsible for the integrity of a structure, “unless the owner gave explicit instruction to affect the structural integrity of the project.”
“Owners are generally protected from structural liability if they hire licensed professionals (architects, engineers, contractors) and do not interfere with their technical decisions because the owner is not an expert but a client seeking a quality service,” he emphasized. (Press Release)
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