Opinion ID: 1312304
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: BACH v FLINT BOARD OF EDUCATION

Text: Plaintiff worked for two years as a secretary for one of defendant's elementary schools where Sandra Epps was the principal. She testified that her relationship with Epps initially was cordial. In fact, her first performance review conducted by Epps indicated that she was a satisfactory employee. However, plaintiff soon began to feel alienated. She testified that her emotional and physical problems began in late September or early October of 1981. Plaintiff felt that Epps was unresponsive to her questions, and she claimed that, at times, Epps snapped at her or answered her questions harshly. Plaintiff also alleged that a number of specific work events added to her feelings of alienation. One such event occurred when Epps had all members of the staff switch jobs for half a day. Plaintiff performed the duties of a math teacher. She claimed that this made her feel uncomfortable because teaching math was not her job. Another event occurred when Epps had plaintiff tell a substitute teacher that the teacher was fired. Plaintiff initially refused, but Epps told her to think of some excuse and eventually made her dismiss the substitute. Plaintiff claimed that this event upset her. Similarly, she also claimed that Epps had her tell callers that Epps was not in when she was, and that this made her feel uneasy. Another event involved a school bulletin board. Plaintiff maintained a bulletin board and changed the posted information monthly. Once, when school district administrators were visiting, Epps took responsibility for the bulletin board herself. Plaintiff felt that Epps had done a poor job on the bulletin board and that Epps had shown it off as a fantastic job. Epps failed to acknowledge plaintiff's contribution in the day-to-day maintenance of the bulletin board. This upset her. One of the most significant events involved plaintiff's second performance review. She was disturbed by the fact that the second review showed no improvement. She felt that she had made significant improvement in her performance between reviews. Epps' failure to acknowledge plaintiff's perceived improvement upset her. Although she did not say anything at first, she eventually did write a letter to Epps indicating her disappointment. When Epps failed to acknowledge receiving the letter, she approached Epps about the issues she had raised. Plaintiff and Epps discussed the letter, but she left with the impression that the discussion had been fruitless. Their relationship continued to deteriorate after that meeting. Plaintiff developed headaches and stomach pains, had irregular sleeping patterns, and became depressed. She lost weight, stayed in bed, and stopped doing household chores. After December 1981, she only went to work one or two times a week. Her mental condition steadily worsened. Her last day of work was February 3, 1982. Epps testified that she was never aware of plaintiff's discomfort. Epps explained her telephone policy, that plaintiff had seemed to enjoy switching jobs for a half day, that numerous people shared responsibility for the bulletin board, and that she deleted some of the comments she made in plaintiff's second performance review after meeting with plaintiff. Expert testimony went both ways regarding whether plaintiff was mentally disabled. Two doctors diagnosed two different forms of depression; another believed plaintiff was not suffering from any active psychiatric disorder. The WCAB denied plaintiff's claim because, under MCL 418.301(2); MSA 17.237(301)(2), it was not convinced that plaintiff's disability was related to actual events of employment that plaintiff accurately perceived. The Court of Appeals affirmed the decision of the WCAB. Actual events did occur in the course of plaintiff's employment. But the meaning plaintiff ascribed to these events, which was the basis for the concerns that led to her claimed disability, was not necessarily accurate. There was no convincing showing that Epps was dissatisfied with plaintiff's work or that Epps would not willingly answer plaintiff's questions. There was no convincing evidence showing that plaintiff's working relationship with Epps deteriorated as plaintiff thought it did. [197 Mich App 247, 251; 494 NW2d 815 (1992).] That Court concluded that the evidence, when viewed from an objective standard, did not support plaintiff's claim for compensation.