The Supreme Court (SC) said on Monday that a school cannot suspend an employee for being pregnant out of wedlock on grounds of immorality.
In a Decision penned by Associate Justice Ricardo Rosario, the SC First Division held that sexual relations between two unmarried, consenting adults are not immoral.
The ruling was made after a grade school teacher in a Christian school was slapped with indefinite suspension without pay after she found out she was two months pregnant. She was accused of immorality until she married her boyfriend.
The teacher filed a complaint, which was initially dismissed by the Labor Arbiter, but the National Labor Relations Commission reversed it.
The High Tribunal ruled it was indeed an illegal suspension, explaining no law prohibits the teacher’s pregnancy, nor does it go against any fundamental state policy found in the Constitution.
It clarified that under the law, the standard of morality applicable to all is public and secular, not religious.
“Public and secular morality refers to conduct that is prohibited due to its harmful effects on human society rather than being based on religious beliefs,” the SC emphasized.
“If the government were to otherwise base public policies and morals on religious beliefs, this would require everyone to conform to a religious program or agenda,” it added.
As the teacher’s pregnancy cannot be considered immoral, it was not a valid ground for her suspension.
The SC ordered the school to pay her back wages and benefits due her during the period she was suspended.