Martin v. E.C. Brooks Correctional Facility
Digest no. 10.122
Section 29(1)(a)
Cite as: Martin v EC Brooks Correctional Facility, Unpublished Opinion of the Court of Appeals of Michigan, Issued December 24, 2014 (Docket No. 316393).
Appeal Pending: No
Claimant: Cathy A. Martin
Employer: E.C. Brooks Correctional Facility
Docket no. 316393
Date of decision: Dec. 24, 2014
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Holding: Claimant is disqualified from receiving unemployment benefits because she failed to establish good cause for leaving her employment when she left in response to rumors of a layoff.
Facts: Claimant worked full-time at the E.C. Brooks Correctional Facility. Claimant left her employment because of uncertainty regarding her job status. Although claimant’s superiors informed her that she was going to be laid off, they subsequently told her that she was going to be transferred. The circuit court found that claimant was “uncertain” of whether she was going to be laid off.
Decision: The UIA determined that claimant was disqualified from receiving benefits. The ALJ disagreed, finding that claimant did qualify for benefits, because leaving in order to avoid a layoff amounted to leaving for good cause attributable to the employer. The MCAC reversed, finding that Claimant did not leave her employer in anticipation of a layoff, but rather, she left in anticipation of a “bump,” which was essentially a transfer. The circuit court affirmed the MCAC, following the same reasoning. The Court of Appeals of Michigan affirmed.
Rationale: The Court of Appeals of Michigan reasoned that Claimant did not satisfy her burden of showing that he leaving was justified because she left because of rumors and uncertainty.
Digest author: James C. Robinson
Digest updated: 3/15