Thomas v. Review Bd. of Indiana Employment Sec. Div.

• Decision Date: 18 July 1979
• Docket Number: No. 2-1276A491,2-1276A491
• Citation: 271 Ind. 233,391 N.E.2d 1127
• Parties: , 25 Fair Empl.Prac.Cas. (BNA) 622 Eddie C. THOMAS, Appellant (Claimant) v. REVIEW BOARD OF the INDIANA EMPLOYMENT SECURITY DIVISION, William H. Skinner, J. Frank Haley, and Ralph Miles, as Members and as constituting the Review Board of Indiana Employment Security Division, and Blaw-Knox Foundry & Machinery, Inc., Appellees. 779S192.
• Court: Indiana Supreme Court

Page 1127

391 N.E.2d 1127

271 Ind. 233, 25 Fair Empl.Prac.Cas. (BNA) 622

Eddie C. THOMAS, Appellant (Claimant) v. REVIEW BOARD OF the INDIANA EMPLOYMENT SECURITY DIVISION William H. Skinner, J. Frank Haley, and Ralph Miles, as Members and as constituting the Review Board of Indiana Employment Security Division, and Blaw-Knox Foundry & Machinery, Inc., Appellees.

No. 2-1276A491 779S192.

Supreme Court of Indiana.

July 18, 1979.

Rehearing Denied Sept. 20, 1979.

Janet L. Jannusch, Gary, for appellant (claimant).

Theo. L. Sendak, Atty. Gen., Darrell K. Diamond, Asst. Atty. Gen., Indianapolis, for appellees.

PIVARNIK, Justice.

This cause comes to us on a petition to transfer from the Court of Appeals. Appellant filed a claim for unemployment compensation stating that he voluntarily quit work because of religious convictions. After an initial determination by a deputy denying his claim, a hearing was held before an appeals referee on January 27, 1976. His decision of March 3, 1976 affirmed the determination of the deputy and included Findings and Conclusions denying Eddie C. Thomas' claim for unemployment compensation because he voluntarily left his employment without good cause in connection with the work. The Employment Security Review Board affirmed the referee's decision and adopted, by reference, the referee's Findings and Conclusions. The Court of Appeals Opinion by Sullivan, J., Shields, J., concurring, reversed the judgment of the Review Board. Buchanan, C. J., dissented with opinion. Thomas v. Review Board of Indiana Employment Sec., (1978) Ind.App., 381 N.E.2d 888.

The question presented for our review is whether the statute which made the claimant ineligible for unemployment benefits if he voluntarily left his employment without good cause in connection with the work, Ind.Code § 22-4-15-1 (Burns 1974), as it applies to Thomas, violates his First Amendment guarantee to the free exercise of his religion.

The record reveals that the claimant, Eddie C. Thomas, without seeking any information about the company, applied for employment at Blaw-Knox, a plant engaged primarily in the production of weapons. He was aided in obtaining the employment by his friend, a fellow church member, who worked in the roll foundry. The general foreman of the roll foundry had agreed to hire Thomas, so when he applied he was hired directly into the roll foundry. There was no exception made for him because of his religion. On his employment application he gave his religion as Jehovah's Witnesses and listed as hobbies Bible reading and Bible study. He stated no restrictions or conditions regarding his work on his application for employment.

Thomas had worked for Blaw-Knox for nearly a year when the roll foundry closed. He was then transferred to the turret line. He stated that on the first day he worked there as a chainman hooker, he realized what type of work he was doing, and that after checking the board where job openings were posted, he finally realized that "all of Blaw-Knox was armaments." He approached his friend, the other Jehovah's Witness, about the work situation and his friend said that he didn't find anything wrong with working there, and that he didn't view it as "unscriptural." The claimant then inquired of other members of the congregation and stated that they agreed to make the decision of whether or not it would be unscriptural for him to continue working there. The record does not reflect whether or not this decision was made by them. The claimant did not seek a transfer because he said there were no other departments for him to work in. He asked for a lay-off, which was denied, and on November 6, 1975, he quit after working as a chainman for nearly a month, stating that continuing to work with armaments was against his religious principles.

The fact that Eddie Thomas decided that he could not, in good conscience, work at Blaw-Knox and that he quit voluntarily, does not require that this court declare that statute disqualifying him from receiving benefits unconstitutional as it applies to him.

"To strike down without the most critical scrutiny, legislation which imposes only an indirect burden on the exercise of religion, i. e., legislation which does not make unlawful the religious practice itself, would radically restrict the operating latitude of the legislature."

Braunfeld v. Brown, (1961) 366 U.S. 599, 606, 81 S.Ct. 1144, 1147, 6 L.Ed.2d 563-568.

Under the Indian Employment Security Act, Ind.Code § 22-4-15-1 (Burns 1974) an individual "who has voluntarily left his employment without good cause in connection with the work" is disqualified from receiving benefits.

The public policy of this State in unemployment compensation is declared in Ind.Code § 22-4-1-1 (Burns 1974).

"Economic insecurity due to unemployment is declared hereby to be a serious menace to the health, morale and welfare of the people of this state and to the maintenance of public order within this state. Protection against this great hazard of our economic life can be provided in some measure by the required and systematic accumulation of funds during periods of employment to provide benefits to the unemployed during periods of unemployment and by encouragement of desirable stable employment. The enactment of this measure to provide for payment of benefits to persons unemployed through no fault of their own, to encourage stabilization in employment, and to provide for a state employment service is, therefore, essential to public welfare; and the same is declared to be a proper exercise of the police powers of the state."

The purpose of this legislation is clear. It is to protect people from the menace of periods of unemployment and to encourage stable employment. It is not intended to facilitate changing employment or to provide relief for those who quit work voluntarily for personal reasons. Voluntary unemployment is not compensable under the purpose of the Act, which is to provide benefits for persons unemployed through no fault of their own. Abshier v. Review Bd., Empl. Sec. Div., (1952) 122 Ind.App. 425, 430, 105 N.E.2d 902, cited in Achenbach v. Review Board of Indiana Employment Security Division, (1962) 242 Ind. 655, 179 N.E.2d 873.

Good cause which justifies voluntary termination must be job-related and objective in character. In Geckler v. Review Bd. of the Ind. Emp. Sec. Div., (1963) 244 Ind. 473, 193 N.E.2d 357, the Indiana Supreme Court considered a claim by an employee who had voluntarily terminated her employment because of criticism by her employer when she "honestly" believed that it was impossible for her to continue in the employment. The question presented was whether such an employee would be considered to have terminated her employment for "good cause." The Court stated:

"As a general rule, the cases hold that "good cause", which justifies the voluntary termination of employment and entitles the claimant to compensation, must be related to the employment, and thus be Objective in character. The cases have not extended the construction of "good cause" to include purely personal and subjective reasons which are unique to the employee, but have required that such "cause" would similarly affect persons of Reasonable and Normal sensitivity."

Id., 244 Ind. at 477-78, 193 N.E.2d at 359.

In the area of unemployment compensation, Indiana distinguishes between statutory "good cause" for quitting work "without good cause in connection with the work", and some valid personal reason. Neutral objective standards must be met to qualify for compensation.

In Lewis v. Review Board, (1972) 152 Ind.App. 187, 282 N.E.2d 876, the Court of Appeals determined that a claimant who had left work because of failing eyesight and a desire to be with his children before he became totally blind, had not quit work with "good cause" in connection with the employment within the meaning of the Employment Act. "Good cause" justifying termination of employment and entitling an employee to compensation must objectively relate to the employment and not to reasons personal to the employee.

In Gray v. Dobbs House, Inc., (1976) Ind.App., 357 N.E.2d 900, the Court of Appeals discussed the distinction between "good cause" in a failure to apply "without good cause" for available suitable work, or to accept suitable work offered, and "good cause" involved when an employee Quits work "without good cause in connection with the work." Parental obligations and transportation difficulties were held not to constitute "good cause" within the meaning of the claim of an employee who had voluntarily left her employment without "good cause" attributable to her employer. This means that a claimant who has terminated his employment must demonstrate that (a) his reasons for abandoning his employment were such as would impel a reasonable, prudent man to terminate under the same or similar circumstances; and (b) these reasons or causes are objectively related to the employment.

In Gray, supra, it was noted that although parental obligations no doubt constitute good personal reason for termination of employment, they nevertheless lack the objective nexus with employment envisioned by the Act, which is required for one to qualify for benefits. The claim that transportation was not available without unreasonable expense, and that this fact constituted good cause in connection with the employment, was also rejected by the Court of Appeals, even though it could be good cause for refusing available work under Ind.Code § 22-4-15-2 (Burns 1974).

A stricter standard being applied to those who voluntarily quit work as compared to those who refuse available work seems to be in keeping with the intent of the legislature and the announced purpose of the Unemployment Compensation Act to avoid the menace of unemployment by encouraging people to maintain present jobs rather than to quit them. It allows employees to restrict or place necessary conditions upon their...