In a landmark decision in Georgia Unemployment litigation, a three judge panel of the Georgia Court of Appeals has ruled that a domestic violence victim who quit her job because her violent abuser began seeking her out at work can receive unemployment benefits. The Court’s decision adds yet another circumstance to the growing list of situations under which an employee may voluntarily quit his or her job and still have the potential to receive unemployment benefits. For more, see this article.
The claimant was a cashier who had suffered repeated violent attacks by an ex-boyfriend. She was forced to change jobs and residences to escape this violence, yet the boyfriend somehow discovered where she worked and showed up at her place of work in direct violation of a restraining order. Fearing for her safety, the woman quit her job. The woman’s employer argued that she had quit for personal reasons that were not connected to her work, and she, therefore, should be disqualified from receiving benefits. The Department of Labor agreed, as did a Fulton County Superior Court Judge who reviewed the case. The Court of Appeals, however, disagreed.
The case, Scott v. Butler, et al., A14A0105, June 4, 2014, marked the first of its kind in Georgia. The panel’s ruling expanded upon well-settled Georgia law that a person has good cause to quit his or her job when being harassed or threatened by a co-worker or supervisor. Discussing similar rulings from other states, and citing “Georgia’s public policy favoring payment of unemployment benefits to persons who are unemployed through no fault of their own,” the Court held that the [claimant] had “met her burden of demonstrating that she is entitled to unemployment benefits.” The Court went on to note that “[e]ven though the employer did not create or contribute to the dangers at issue, to deny [the claimant] benefits under the circumstances presented would, in effect, require her to work in a dangerous environment wherein she and numerous others would be unnecessarily exposed to the actual threat of violence due to circumstances that are entirely beyond their control. This would be an outcome that is unjust, inequitable, and inconsistent with the expressed purpose of the act.”
No matter the circumstances, if you have quit your job, or are thinking of quitting your job, call us! Voluntary separation cases are much more complex than termination cases, and the team at Radford & Keebaugh has the knowledge, expertise, and experience to guide you through the process. Call us at (678) 369-3609 or use our contact form.