Court Opinion

ID: 9546981
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 17:39:01.722783+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T15:17:06.570100
License: Public Domain

BAKES, Chief Justice.
Helen Taylor was fired from her employment with Burley Care Center. Her claim for unemployment benefits was denied on the ground that she was terminated for misconduct. She appealed, and after a hearing, the Department of Employment appeals examiner denied her claims for unemployment benefits. This decision was appealed to the Industrial Commission, which granted Taylor’s request and remanded the matter for another hearing with the Department of Employment. Additional evidence was presented and received, following which the Department of Employment again denied benefits. On ap*793peal from this re-examination, the Industrial Commission adopted the decision of the Department hearing examiner, with minor factual modifications. Taylor appealed the Industrial Commission’s decision and order to this Court.
The issue presented by this appeal is whether there is substantial competent evidence to support the Industrial Commission’s finding that Taylor was discharged for misconduct. I.C. § 72-1366(e) provides that a claimant may not receive unemployment benefits if “[s]he was discharged for misconduct in connection with h[er] employment.” Whether or not an action is “misconduct” is a question of fact to be determined by the Industrial Commission. Spruell v. Allied Meadows Corp., 117 Idaho 277, 787 P.2d 263 (1990); Booth v. City of Burley, 99 Idaho 229, 580 P.2d 75 (1978).
In its decision and order, the Industrial Commission found that there was misconduct. The Commission adopted with minor modifications the findings of the appeals examiner who found the following.
Taylor worked as a charge nurse for Burley Care Center from September 17, 1984, until March 8, 1988. Taylor was supervised by the director of nursing who became dissatisfied with her work performance and attitude. A meeting was held on March 4, 1988, in which the dissatisfactions were discussed and Taylor was given a written warning. At that meeting, Taylor agreed to submit a written plan of correction by March 8, 1988. A meeting between Taylor and her supervisor was scheduled for March 8, 1988.
On March 8, 1988, Taylor arrived for the meeting accompanied by her sister,' who was a nurse at a competitor facility. The supervisor explained it would not be appropriate to discuss the patients and their treatment in front of an outsider. The supervisor was willing to discuss Taylor’s concerns with Taylor herself, review the documents, and reschedule a meeting with Taylor.
The supervisor and Taylor went to the administrator’s office to discuss the situation. The administrator offered to schedule a meeting when she was available to sit down with Taylor and her supervisor to review the dispute. Taylor refused to attend any meeting without her sister present. The administrator reiterated that because of confidentiality, it was inappropriate to have an outsider at the meeting, especially one from a competitor business. Taylor argued that it was her right to have anyone with her, including her son, if she so desired. When Taylor again refused to discuss the situation with her supervisor and/or the administrator without her sister present, she was terminated.
The test for determining misconduct is first, whether the employee’s conduct fell below the standard of behavior expected by the employer; and second, whether the employer’s expectation was objectively reasonable in the particular case. Matthews v. Bucyrus-Erie Co., 101 Idaho 657, 619 P.2d 1110 (1980). Based on evidence and the above test, the Commission adopted the appeals examiner’s finding that:
While the claimant may have had concerns about meeting with her supervisor alone, she had an obligation to discuss the matter with her supervisor or the administrator prior to the time of the scheduled meeting to make other arrangements. The claimant had the right to meet privately with the administrator but didn’t avail herself of that right. The supervisor’s concerns about protecting patients’ confidentiality was real. Trying to have a meaningful discussion without discussing specifics of a patient would have been cumbersome if not impossible. The claimant did not act in good faith in trying to arrange for a witness who was acceptable to both parties. The requirement was on her to do so prior to the start of the meeting or to request rescheduling of the meeting. The claimant has not established that the administrator would have been an unreliable witness or that her distrust of going into the meeting without her sister was reasonable. The employer’s expectation that the claimant meet with the supervisor and/or administrator to discuss the problems was reasonable. The claim*794ant’s refusal to do so constitutes misconduct in connection with the employment.
This Court’s review of unemployment compensation cases involving factual disputes is restricted to determining whether the findings of fact by the Industrial Commission are supported by substantial and competent evidence in the record. Idaho Constitution, art. 5 § 9; I.C. § 72-732; Spruell v. Allied Meadows Corp., supra. We find that the Industrial Commission’s determination is supported by substantial competent evidence. The order of the Industrial Commission denying unemployment insurance benefits is affirmed.
JOHNSON, BOYLE and McDEVITT, JJ., concur.