Stanrail Corp. v. Unemployment Insurance Review Board

734 N.E.2d 1102, 2000 Ind. App. LEXIS 1467, 2000 WL 1297723
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedSeptember 14, 2000
Docket93A02-9911-EX-765
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 734 N.E.2d 1102 (Stanrail Corp. v. Unemployment Insurance Review Board) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

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Stanrail Corp. v. Unemployment Insurance Review Board, 734 N.E.2d 1102, 2000 Ind. App. LEXIS 1467, 2000 WL 1297723 (Ind. Ct. App. 2000).

Opinions

OPINION

FRIEDLANDER, Judge

Thomas Pierce’s employment was terminated by Stanrail Corporation and he thereafter applied for unemployment benefits. An intake examiner and later an administrative law judge (ALJ) determined that Pierce was terminated for just cause, and he was thereby denied unemployment benefits. Pierce appealed to the Unemployment Insurance Review Board (the Board), which reversed the ALJ and held that Pierce was not terminated for just cause, and he therefore was entitled to unemployment benefits. We address the following issue, which is dispositive of the appeal:

Did the Board err in concluding that Pierce was not terminated for just cause?

We reverse.

Pierce was an employee at Stanrail. Stanrail’s attendance program was published in a handbook and distributed to all employees. Following is -a brief description of relevant components of that policy. On a yearly basis, each employee was entitled to (1) five sick days, (2) two personal business days, (3) two three-day (at a minimum) illness leaves, and (4) accrued vacation days. The program rewarded perfect attendance with a monthly bonus and penalized absence, tardiness, and misconduct with a system of demerit points, which included the following:

[[Image here]]
Failing to punch time card Tardy to Ol
0-6 minutes ^ o
7-12 minutes to o
13-18 minutes ^ o
19 + minutes
sent home (manager’s decision) o O
stay (manager’s decision) o U3
Early quit
3.5 .or more hours o o
less than 3.5 hours
1st and 2 nd early quit Ol
3rd ©
after 3rd early quit ©
Unexcused absence ©
[1104]*1104[[Image here]]
Failure to wear safety glasses 50
Inappropriate use of forklift 50
General safety violations 50
Horseplay 50
Careless equipment/material damage 50
Deliberate equipment/material damage 300

Record at 49-50. With respect to reporting absences, the manual instructed the employees as follows:

' You MUST CALL OFF every day you are absent, (exception: you are on scheduled Vacation, approved Leave of Absence, Workman’s Compensation, or Hospitalization your supervisor is aware of) You are to TALK TO A SUPERVISOR [afternoon shift] or LEAVE THE INFORMATION WITH THE GUARD [morning shift]. You are NOT to give the information to the Switchboard.

Record at 51 (emphasis in original). As reflected above, failure to adhere to the call-in policy subjected an employee to 300 demerit points for being absent without reporting. An employee accumulating more than 500 demerit points was subject to immediate termination.

On January 5, 1999, Pierce missed work, but reported his absence according to the specified procedure. He was assessed 100 demerit points. Pierce was also absent on January 6, but failed to call in. Therefore, he was assessed 300 demerit points. On January 7, Pierce was again absent. On that day, he called to report his absence, but spoke only with someone who worked on the switchboard. He could not later recall the name of the person to whom he had reported. Because he did not adhere to the guidelines for calling in absences, Pierce received 300 demerit points.1 Pierce was terminated as a result of accumulating more than 500 demerit points after his January 6 and 7 absences.

Pierce applied for unemployment benefits. A deputy determined that Pierce was terminated for just cause. That decision was appealed to an ALJ, who affirmed the denial of benefits. The ALJ entered the following conclusions in support of the decision:

From the foregoing findings, it is concluded that the claimant was discharged from his employment with this employer. It is concluded that the claimant was discharged for a violation of the employer’s demerit program concerning attendance. It is concluded that the attendance program is enforced with all employees on a uniform basis. According to I.C. 22-4r-15-l(d)(2) a discharge for just cause is defined to include but not to be limited to a knowing violation by an employee of a reasonable and uniformly enforced rule of the employer concerning attendance. Therefore, it is concluded that the claimant was discharged for just cause within the meaning and intent of I.C. 22-4-15-1.

Record at 6. Pierce appealed the ALJ’s decision to the Board. The Board reversed, entering the following conclusions:

In a discharge case, the Employer bears the burden of proving that it discharged the Claimant for just cause as that term is defined in Indiana Code § 22-4-15-1(d). Russell v. Review Board, 58[6] N.E.2d 942 (Ind.Ct.App.1992). In Barnett v. Review Board, 419 N.E.2d 249 (Ind.Ct.App.1981), the Court held that the Review Board must make certain specific findings in cases involving a discharge for violating an employer’s rules. To find that a discharge was for just cause, there must first be a finding that: (1) there was a rule; (2) the rule was [1105]*1105reasonable; (3) the rule was uniformly enforced; (4) the claimant knew of the rule; and (5) the claimant knowingly violated the rule. A reasonable attendance policy would allow exemptions for long-term absences for illness and verified emergencies as well as provide.for progressive discipline prior to discharge. Beene v. Review Board, 528 N.E.2d 842 (Ind.Ct.App.1988).
This policy is unreasonable. Except for the two personal days a year and three days or more of absence with a doctor’s slip, there were no unexcused absences under the policy. Court appearances of any kind are listed as “non-excused” absence. This unexcused absence category would apparently include jury duty which is a legally protected obligation'. These deficiencies render the policy unreasonable.

Record at 9. Stanrail appeals the decision of the Board.2

Our task when reviewing a decision by the Board is to determine whether the decision is reasonable in light of its findings. Kentucky Truck Sales, Inc. v. Review Bd. of Indiana Dep’t of Workforce Dev., 725 N.E.2d 523 (Ind.Ct.App.2000). Generally, the Board’s findings of fact are conclusive and binding upon this court. Accordingly, we neither reweigh evidence nor assess witness credibility. Browning-Ferris Indus. v. Review Bd. of Indiana Dep’t of Workforce Dev., 693 N.E.2d 1351 (Ind.Ct.App.1998). We are not, however, bound by the Board’s interpretation of the relevant law.

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734 N.E.2d 1102, 2000 Ind. App. LEXIS 1467, 2000 WL 1297723, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/stanrail-corp-v-unemployment-insurance-review-board-indctapp-2000.