Miller v. Help at Home, Inc.

• Decision Date: 07 February 2006
• Docket Number: No. WD 64918.,WD 64918.
• Citation: 186 S.W.3d 801
• Parties: Delydia MILLER, Appellant, v. HELP AT HOME, INC., Defendant, and Division of Employment Security, Respondent.
• Court: Missouri Court of Appeals

Page 801

186 S.W.3d 801

Delydia MILLER, Appellant, v. HELP AT HOME, INC., Defendant, and Division of Employment Security, Respondent.

No. WD 64918.

Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District.

February 7, 2006.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Samuel I. McHenry, Kansas City, MO, for appellant.

Larry R. Ruhmann, St. Louis, MO, Marilyn G. Green, Jefferson City, MO, for respondent.

Before EDWIN H. SMITH, C.J., and ULRICH and HARDWICK, JJ.

EDWIN H. SMITH, Chief Judge.

Delydia Miller appeals the decision of the Labor and Industrial Relations Commission (Commission) disqualifying her, pursuant to § 288.050, RSMo, Supp.2005,¹ from receiving immediate unemployment compensation benefits, on the basis that she left work voluntarily without good cause attributable to her work or employer, the respondent, Help at Home, Inc. (HHI).

The appellant raises two points on appeal. In Point I, she attacks the Commission's finding that she did not have good cause to voluntarily leave or quit her employment with HHI. In Point II, she attacks the Commission's finding that she quit her employment, rather than being terminated by HHI. Specifically, in Point I, she claims that the Commission erred in disqualifying her from receiving immediate unemployment compensation benefits, pursuant to § 288.050, based upon its finding that she voluntarily left her employment with HHI without good cause, because the facts found by the Commission and the record do not support a finding that she did not have good cause for leaving her employment. In Point II, she claims that the Commission erred in disqualifying her from receiving immediate unemployment compensation benefits, based upon its finding that she voluntarily left her employment, because the facts found by the Commission and the record do not support a finding that she quit her employment with HHI.

We affirm.

Facts

In March of 2004, HHI hired the appellant to provide in-home care for disabled and elderly clients. At the time of the appellant's employment, she was assigned to work thirty hours per week, six hours per day, at $7.80 per hour. Her immediate supervisor was Linda Bramell.

At the beginning of June, 2004, Bramell notified the appellant that her hours were being cut from thirty hours a week to fifteen for a period of two weeks. This temporary reduction resulted from the fact that the niece, Diane Britt, of the client to whom the appellant was then assigned, Ida Britt, was having surgery and would be off work for two weeks recovering, allowing her to care for her aunt for that period of time during the day, so that the appellant would only be needed three hours per day. After being notified of this temporary reduction in hours, the appellant resigned in writing. Her resignation was dated June 4, 2004, and was given to Bramell on June 9, 2004, and accepted. In her resignation, she gave a two-week notice.

On June 11, 2004, the appellant had a conversation with Ms. Britt's niece, Diane Britt, who asked her not to leave. Based on that conversation, the appellant had a change of heart and decided she wanted to return to work.

On June 16, 2004, Bramell received information from the Family Care Safety Registry, § 210.903, which led her to believe that the appellant was, at least temporarily, disqualified from providing care to the elderly. On that same day, Bramell and appellant had a meeting, during which the appellant requested to rescind her resignation, which was denied. Bramell advised the appellant during the meeting about the information she had received from the Family Care Safety Registry requiring HHI to accelerate her resignation, making it effective immediately.

On June 17, 2004, the appellant filed her initial claim for benefits, which was protested by HHI. Her claim was denied by a deputy of the Division of Employment Security, who determined that she was "disqualified from 6/16/04 because the claimant left work with [HHI] voluntarily without good cause attributable to her work or employer on 6/16/04." On July 15, 2004, the appellant filed a timely appeal from the decision of the Deputy. Her appeal was heard, by teleconference, on August 3, 2004. A referee of the Appeals Tribunal affirmed the Deputy's decision. The appellant sought review of the Referee's decision by the Commission. On November 18, 2004, the Commission entered its order affirming and adopting the decision of the Appeals Tribunal.

This appeal follows.

Standard of Review

Our review of the Commission's decision denying benefits to the appellant is governed by § 288.210, which reads, in pertinent part:

The findings of the commission as to the facts, if supported by competent and substantial evidence and in the absence of fraud, shall be conclusive, and the jurisdiction of the appellate court shall be confined to questions of law. The court, on appeal, may modify, reverse, remand for rehearing, or set aside the decision of the commission on the following grounds and no other:

(1) That the commission acted without or in excess of its powers;

(2) That the decision was procured by fraud (3) That the facts found by the commission do not support the award; or

(4) That there was no sufficient competent evidence in the record to warrant the making of the award.

Thus, we will affirm the Commission's decision if upon review of the whole record, we find that there is substantial and competent evidence to support it. Higgins v. Mo. Div. of Employment Sec., 167 S.W.3d 275, 279 (Mo.App.2005) (citing Hampton v. Big Boy Steel Erection, 121 S.W.3d 220, 223 (Mo. banc 2003)).

A factual determination is not supported by competent and substantial evidence if it is against the weight of the evidence. Hampton, 121 S.W.3d at 223. A factual determination by the Commission will be disturbed on appeal, on the basis that it is against the weight of the evidence, only when there is a firm belief that the judgment is wrong. Morgan v. McBee, 174 S.W.3d 640, 643 (Mo.App. 2005).

I.

In Point I, the appellant claims that the Commission erred in disqualifying her from receiving immediate unemployment compensation benefits, pursuant to § 288.050, based upon its finding that she voluntarily left her employment with HHI without good cause, because the facts found by the Commission and the record do not support a finding that she did not have good cause for leaving her employment. In Point II, she claims that the Commission erred in disqualifying her from receiving immediate unemployment compensation benefits, based upon a finding that she voluntarily left her employment, because the facts found by the Commission and the record do not support a finding that she quit her employment with HHI. Because Point I is only relevant to the extent that the appellant actually voluntarily left her employment with HHI, we will address Point II first. If, after addressing Point II, we determine that the Commission did not err in finding that she quit her employment with HHI, we will move to Point I to determine whether she quit with good cause.

The Commission's determination of whether an employee voluntarily left his employment or was discharged is a factual determination. Quik `N Tasty Foods, Inc. v. Div. of Employment Sec., 17 S.W.3d 620, 624 (Mo.App.2000). Hence, we will review such a determination to see if there is competent and substantial evidence to support it. Our review then in this point is to determine whether the Commission's finding, that the appellant quit her employment with HHI, is supported by competent and substantial evidence. If there is conflicting evidence as to a factual issue, the resolution of that conflict is for the Commission. Worley v. Div. of Employment Sec., 978 S.W.2d 480, 483 (Mo.App.1998).

The Commission, adopting the Appeals Tribunal's findings, found that:

On or about June 4 the employer temporarily reduced the claimant's work hours to 15 hours per week. The claimant tendered her written resignation on June 9, expressly declaring it was her two-week notice. She testified that she resigned when she did because she needed more work hours and more pay. She did not, however, have other employment arranged with a new employer. The employer accepted the claimant's resignation as tendered. The claimant last worked her scheduled work hours on June 16. The employer notified her that she did not need to work the remainder of her two-week notice time.

From these facts, the Commission, adopting the Appeals Tribunal conclusions, concluded that the claimant "left her work voluntarily . . . after her last workday on June 16, 2004." Thus, on appeal, the issue is whether this conclusion is supported by substantial and competent evidence.

Section 288.050 governs whether an employee is qualified for immediate receipt of unemployment compensation benefits, and provides, in pertinent part:

1. Notwithstanding the other provisions of this law, a claimant shall be disqualified for waiting week credit or benefits until after the claimant has earned wages for work insured pursuant to the unemployment compensation laws of any state equal to ten times the claimant's weekly benefit amount if the deputy finds:

(1) That the claimant has left work voluntarily without good cause attributable to such work or to the claimant's employer. . . .

§ 288.050.1(1). Thus, in accordance with § 288.050, an employee is not entitled to immediate benefits if he voluntarily left his employment without good cause. Taylor v. Div. of Employment Sec., 153 S.W.3d 878, 881 (Mo.App.2005). The claimant has the burden of proof with respect to eligibility for benefits. Id. Thus, if the receipt of benefits is challenged by the employer, for the employee's voluntarily leaving employment without good cause, the employee has the burden of showing that either he did not leave employment voluntarily, or, that if he did, he did so with good cause. Id.

The appellant claims in this point that the facts found by the Commission and the record do not support the...