Section 29(1)(b)
MISCONDUCT, Tape recording
CITE AS: Kunz v Mid-Michigan Regional Medical Center, unpublished per curiam Court of Appeals, December 6, 1991 (No.181965).
Appeal pending: No
Claimant: Hazel Kunz
Employer: Mid-Michigan Regional Medical Center.
Docket No. B91-18373-121595W
COURT OF APPEALS HOLDING: Claimant's secret taping of a private conversation between herself and her supervisor was deliberately done to discredit her supervisor and is disqualifying misconduct.
FACTS: Claimant had been suspended after repeated failures in work performance. Upon returning to work the claimant requested to meet with her supervisor. She came into the meeting carrying a concealed tape recorder and secretly recorded the meeting. After the meeting was concluded she played the recording for her husband and told a co-worker she had taped the meeting with her supervisor. The claimant testified she taped the meeting because after previous conversations with her supervisor, her supervisor could not recall what he said. This way she could keep the record straight.
DECISION: The claimant is disqualified for misconduct.
RATIONALE: The Referee summarized the reasons claimant gave for recording the meeting. He did not expressly state whether he did or did not believe the claimant, however, this does not mean the Referee did not consider her explanation in reaching his conclusion.
The claimant's conduct of secretly recording her conversation with her supervisor was deliberate. The fact she immediately shared this information with her husband and a co-worker reveals her intent was offensive rather than defensive. It was done to discredit her supervisor and involve a co-worker in her scheme. This was not a good faith error in judgment.
7/99
24, 17, d12: F