Opinion ID: 768583
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Spath's Termination

Text: 7 On January 4, 1997, Spath was working in the Heat Treat Department of Hayes Wheels with fellow employees Mike Shockome and John Helblig when he allegedly tripped, fell backwards onto the burn oven, and injured his back; this injury was not associated with his epileptic disorder. After determining that Spath was injured, Shockome and Helblig paged the department supervisor Richard Guenin. When Guenin arrived, he interviewed Spath, who informed Guenin that he was sweeping, tripped, and fell onto the burn oven. Based on this information, Guenin completed the Supervisor's First Report of Injury, writing: Rod tripped on paint line hinges on a skid and fell into [the] burn off oven. Guenin read Spath what he had written on the Report. Spath then reviewed the Report himself, and signed it. Afterwards, Spath went to the hospital for treatment of his injuries. 8 Before Spath left the plant on the day of his injury, Guenin gave him a blank Employee's Incident Report. Spath took this form home with him in order that his wife might assist him in completing it. On his next day of work, January 6, 1997, Spath submitted the signed Employee's Incident Report on which he wrote: I was sweeping the floor and triped [sic] over a broken edge of duning and fell into the Age Oven hitting my back. Based on this Employee's Incident Report, Hayes Wheels filed a worker's compensation claim on Spath's behalf. 9 Approximately two months after Spath's accident, employee Ted Johnson informed Hayes Wheels' Safety Manager, Wayne Desai, that Spath was injured while engaged in horseplay. Desai then interviewed Shockome and Helblig who confirmed Johnson's story, explaining that Spath was injured while attempting to catch a ball of duct tape that Helblig threw to him. Both Helblig and Shockome signed written statements which read: 10 On January 4, 1997, Rodney Spath, John Helblig, and Mike Shockome were back in the heat treat area. During their scheduled work time back there, they started throwing a ball of duct tape to each other. On one of the throws that John sent to Rodney, it went higher than Rodney could catch. Rodney tried to run back and catch the ball and tripped over his own feet and fell backwards onto the age oven. 11 After interviewing a total of five individuals, each of whom confirmed that Spath was injured while engaged in horseplay, Desai interviewed Spath. Despite the evidence to the contrary, Spath stuck to his original explanation: that he was sweeping when he injured his back. Desai confronted Spath with the statements of Shockome and Helblig, but Spath continued to deny that he was engaged in horseplay at the time he was injured. 12 Desai provided the results of his investigation to Rachel Wust, a Human Resources Specialist. Wust testified that, based on the statements of Shockome and Helblig, she believed that Spath was injured while playing with the duct tape ball and not while sweeping. Thus, she was convinced that Spath's claim that he was injured while sweeping was less than truthful. Wust concluded that Spath had violated Plant Rule 5 by filing a false report, and that he ought to be terminated for that violation. 4 Wust then consulted with Rick Guernsey, the Plant Manager, and Rick Uecker, another Human Resource Specialist, who both concurred with her decision to terminate Spath. 13 Because of Spath's violation of Plant Rule 5, Wust placed Spath on suspension without pay beginning February 27, 1997, and scheduled a termination meeting for March 11, 1997, to present Spath with the results of the investigation and the action that the company had to take based on that information. Wust, Desai, Uecker, Guernsey, Spath, and his wife, Linda, attended. At the meeting, Wust informed Spath that his employment was being terminated effective immediately for providing false information concerning his injury.