Philippine Labor Law Glossary
Definition: A lockout is an employer’s temporary refusal to furnish work because of an industrial or labor dispute.
What Lockout Means
A lockout is the employer-side counterpart to a strike. It is not the same as a permanent business closure, retrenchment, an ordinary suspension of operations or disciplinary suspension.
Philippine law recognizes lockouts only under limited grounds and procedures. The employer must distinguish a genuine labor-dispute lockout from other operational measures and comply with notice, vote, cooling-off and reporting requirements.
Core Legal Rules
- A lockout may be declared in cases of bargaining deadlock or unfair labor practice, subject to statutory restrictions.
- The employer must file the appropriate notice with the NCMB within the required period.
- The decision must be approved through the required secret-ballot vote of the employer’s governing body or partners.
- The vote result must be reported within the required period before the intended lockout.
- No lockout may be declared on prohibited grounds or after lawful assumption, certification or submission of the dispute to arbitration where the law bars the action.
Evidence That May Matter
| Evidence | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Notice of lockout | Shows the stated ground, filing date and intended action. |
| Board or partnership vote records | Document approval through the required decision-making process. |
| NCMB filing and service records | Show compliance with notice and reporting requirements. |
| Bargaining records | Help establish a genuine bargaining deadlock. |
| ULP documents and communications | Support or contradict the asserted unfair-labor-practice ground. |
Why the Term Matters
An unlawful lockout may expose the employer to serious legal consequences. Correct classification matters because a temporary refusal to provide work can also raise wage, dismissal or floating-status issues when the requirements for a lockout are absent.
Practical Example
Hypothetical example: During a genuine bargaining deadlock, an employer files a notice of lockout, obtains the required governing-body approval and observes the legal cooling-off and reporting requirements before taking action.
Common Misunderstanding
Misunderstanding: An employer may call any temporary shutdown a lockout and avoid other labor obligations.
Correct approach: A legal lockout is specifically tied to a labor dispute and is governed by strict substantive and procedural requirements.
Sources and Legal Citations
- Book V — Labor Relations, Labor Code of the Philippines — Official source.
- DOLE Department Order No. 40-03, as amended — Official source.
- NCMB Conciliation-Mediation — Official source.
Editorial Review and Legal-Review Status
Prepared by: LaborCode.ph Editorial Team
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Source verification: Official legal sources checked on August 6, 2026
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Disclaimer
This glossary entry is for general educational and legal-information purposes and is not legal advice. Labor disputes depend on specific facts and current law. LaborCode.ph is independent and is not a government website, tribunal or law firm.