Vicker v. Starkey

122 N.W.2d 169, 265 Minn. 464, 97 A.L.R. 2d 745, 1963 Minn. LEXIS 688
CourtSupreme Court of Minnesota
DecidedMay 29, 1963
Docket38,921
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 122 N.W.2d 169 (Vicker v. Starkey) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Minnesota primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Vicker v. Starkey, 122 N.W.2d 169, 265 Minn. 464, 97 A.L.R. 2d 745, 1963 Minn. LEXIS 688 (Mich. 1963).

Opinion

Murphy, Justice.

This case is before us on certiorari to review a determination of the commissioner of the Department of Employment Security denying relator, Donald R. Vicker, unemployment compensation benefits. The narrow issue presented is whether the claimant is eligible for unemployment compensation benefits within the meaning of Minn. St. 268.08, subd. 1(1, 2), during a period when he failed to continue to report in person at an unemployment office and make continued claims for benefits in accordance with statute and regulation.

Prior to December 8, 1960, the claimant had been employed as a tractor and digger operator for Vicker and Sorenson, Inc., a sewer and waterline excavating company at Rochester, Minnesota. The claimant’s brother was one of the owners of the company. On the latter date claimant was laid off because of lack of work. On December 12, 1960, he registered with the local employment service office of the Department of Employment Security at Rochester and filed a valid claim for unemployment benefits. He was instructed that to be eligible for benefits thereafter he was to report at the office weekly and file claims. He accordingly reported weekly and filed claims for the period ending January 29, 1961. During this period he received weekly payments of $38, which were charged against the amount of benefits to which he was entitled under law.

On January 29, 1961, claimant broke his right arm in an accident as a result of which he was confined to a hospital until February 4, following. His brother, and former employer, called at the office on January 31, 1961, for the claimant’s weekly check. Delivery of the check was refused. It appears that 3 days later the brother again called at the office and told one of the employees that the employer would have no objection to the payment of benefits to the claimant. On February 7, *466 1961, while the claimant was still disabled because of the accident, he called the unemployment office by telephone and was informed that because- of his broken arm he was not eligible for unemployment compensation benefits. It appears that the claimant made another telephone call within 14 days of his last reporting date and as he testified, “asked if I could make an appointment or something or file a new claim and they said, they rejected me right at the desk so I never came back.” This appears to be the substance of the negotiations between the claimant and the local office until February 16, 1962. It further appears from the record that on May 24, 1961, the claimant took a job with the Woodrich Construction Company as an operator of a self-propelled roller. On February 16, 1962, the claims examiner of the Rochester office determined that relator was not entitled to compensation for the period between February 13, 1961, the date he claims he became available for work after his hospitalization, and May 24, 1961, the date he went to work for the Woodrich company. On appeal from this determination, an appeal tribunal of the Department of Employment Security also found relator ineligible for benefits during that period, and its decision was adopted and affirmed by the commissioner.

The record supports the findings of fact that the claimant failed to call personally at the unemployment security office to make a claim for further benefits and made no other contact with it after February 7, 1961.

The claimant’s right to benefits is determined by statute and regulations adopted by the commissioner pursuant to the authority granted him by law.

Minn. St. 268.08, subd. 1,'which relates to eligibility for unemployment compensation, so far as applicable here, provides:

“An individual shall be eligible to receive benefits with respect to any week of unemployment only if the commissioner finds that:
“(1) He has registered for work at and thereafter has continued to report to an employment office, or agent of such office, in accordance with such regulations as the commissioner may prescribe * * *;
“(2) He has made a claim for benefits in accordance with such regulations as the commissioner may prescribe.”

*467 It should be noted that the foregoing statute provides that the claim for benefits shall be made in accordance with such regulations as the commissioner prescribes. The commissioner has accordingly adopted and published Minnesota Regulations Relating to Department of Employment Security (1956 ed.). Regulation No. 8619(b) thereof provides that a recipient of benefits is required to “report in person” at a specified time and place. 1

It appears from the facts in this case that there were circumstances which might have, in fairness, allowed payment of benefits even though the claimant did not report in person and file his weeldy claims. The regulations, however, provide for contingencies where the claimant is prevented by extraordinary circumstances from reporting personally to file his claim for benefits. Where a claimant fails for good cause to report his eligibility and file his claim, an additional period of at least 35 days may be allowed for him to do so. Regulation No. 8619(b), pars. 3 and 4, prescribes what the claimant must do in case of late reporting. The provisions of the foregoing regulation are incorporated in the Local Office Claims Manual of the Department of Employment Security. The manual in part provides:

“1042 Reporting Requirements
“Claimants reporting in local offices shall be scheduled to make weekly reports in person. * * *
“A. Late Reporting
*468 “Regardless of the cause of late reporting a claimant shall be allowed a leeway period of 14 days following his designated reporting day in which to claim benefits for the period for which he would have reported on his reporting day plus any additional subsequent days up to such designated reporting day. Additional leeway is allowed for late reporting with ‘Good Cause.’
* * * * *
“1, Good Cause For Late Reporting
“If a claimant reports on any day later than the reporting day designated by the local office, the claims taker shall, by questioning as to the reasons for reporting late, determine whether or not the claimant had good cause. The determination of good cause shall be made if it is felt that it would have been unreasonable to expect the claimant to report on his designated day. Some examples of good cause would be illness, death in the immediate family, hospitalization, incarceration in jail, employment, seeking employment, bad weather, impassable roads.
* * ***
“b. Other Good Cause — Any individual, upon good cause being shown (except reemployment) for his failure to report his eligibility for benefits and to file his continued claim therefor at the local employment service office, or other place designated, at the time specified for so reporting and filing such continued claim, may report at such office and file such claim or

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Bluebook (online)
122 N.W.2d 169, 265 Minn. 464, 97 A.L.R. 2d 745, 1963 Minn. LEXIS 688, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/vicker-v-starkey-minn-1963.