I won my initial UI claim as well as the lower level appeal.Now my former employer has appealed to the board.Will this go in my favor once again?

by Nicole

( Maryland Unemployment Benefits)

I won my initial unemployment claim as well as the lower level Maryland unemployment appeal hearing. Now my former employer has appealed to the board. Will this go in my favor once again?

I worked in a call center for four years. I was fired for leaving three hours early (I had permission from the supervisor but the general manager fired me).

On this particular day, school was released early due to extreme heat and all after school activities were canceled as well (I have two small kids 8 & 6 whom I had to leave to pick up from school).

At 9am I informed my supervisor that I would attempt to make arrangements to have someone get them, but I would have to leave at 11:15 if I couldn’t.

When I came back from my break unable to do so I was given the okay to leave.

I came in and worked the following day, I was fired 15 minutes before my shift ended.
First my employer said I left without advance notice (two weeks) but how do I notify you of an emergency?

Then the general manager said I walked off the job without getting permission. Employer submitted numerous bogus write ups none with my signature and said I refused to sign (I refused to sign two the others I had never seen)

I won my claim, they appealed and I won the appeal as well.

Now they are appealing to the board.

What are my chances of winning with the board?

Hi Nicole,

The question is contingent upon what the employer has based their board appeal on. Do you know what that might be?

Nonetheless, here’s just my opinion based upon what you told me.

Clearly, they must have been in attendance at the lower level hearing, so I assume they have no grounds for a remand based upon not receiving the hearing notice.

Clearly, according to you, they were willing to lie, going so far as to forge documents after the fact. Not good for their credibility, which the hearing officer is given wide discretion to judge and for which most boards would have to determine based upon hearing the recording of the hearing themselves.

Clearly, they tried to build a case for misconduct to support firing you for an unforeseen emergency that was clearly beyond your control.

In my former life, If I had seen the same things from my cubicle where I could see both sides due to state documentation, I would have advised a withdrawal of the appeal before I spent the time, money and energy getting everything together for the hearing .. for the employer.

If I had suspected that the write-ups had been forged after the fact, (and trust me, I’ve seen my share of suspicious documentation) I would of pushed even harder for the permission to withdraw the appeal, even if I had to step on the toes of an insistent general manager by going over their head .. usually an HR person.

And finally, I know without a doubt, the circumstances surrounding your discharge would be a bad case for any employer .. even if you were on a legitimate final warning for attendance.

Circumstances beyond a person’s control are just that and employers are well advised to wait for the appropriate incident .. if they plan on having a snowballs chance at being able to win by presenting legitimate evidence for legitimate misconduct at a hearing.

I think, based upon the final incident that caused the employer to discharge you, the employer’s chances for winning on appeal to the board .. suck.

The only thing that worries me .. is that I don’t know on what grounds they have based their appeal to the board.

Comments for I won my initial UI claim as well as the lower level appeal.Now my former employer has appealed to the board.Will this go in my favor once again?

Average Rating

Apr 02, 2013
Rating

Continued

by: Double Agent

I thought hard about calling this out thinking that the lawyer for unemployment might get offended if i said, that person was a liar, so i tried to just do my best.. i said i did not say this , that i do not agree, that i would not have been able to come up with this data, the date 12/12/12, i would have never guessed, i would have never new a date. I also told him that best buy policy say’s they check your mvr to find out any citations, but are basing my dismissal off of a camera ticket that has no effect on mvr checks , the office receives these citations and make the drivers pay for them, it happens to a lot of drivers across the board, but this time they pinned it on me taking this out of there own protocol i said!! best buy is in a downward spiral.. i really didnât say this to not be a mudslinger!! i showed the lawyer my mvr printout, not one point/ticket exists, and also said i was never given burden of proof, pictures of me committing viol and lastly nothing was deliberate, nor do i believe that if and when this occurs does anyone deliberate try and violate a camera ticket box/catcher.. My employer never showed up, in my opinion based upon what the 1st interviewer put was damaging, I don’t blame my employer for not showing , cuz they probably didnât need to and most likely has not burden on what is judged considering the statements were so damaging, What should i expect from this, I am a full time dad, full custody of only child, not working, no income. help.

I’m not sure how I can help now. Sounds to me like you didn’t prepare for the hearing very well if your testimony was as confused and disjointed as what you related here.

All I can say, is that I hope you didn’t self disqualify yourself.

There’s other ways of saying someone lied besides calling them a liar.

In unemployment decisions, it’s usually stated as the “employer/claimant’s testimony was not credible”.

I can’t answer you, because I’m still trying to figure out what evidence and testimony was used to support the employer’s burden of proof you committed misconduct.

Certainly not just a document with the interviewer notes ..

Apr 02, 2013
Rating

denied benefits, lower level appeal company no /show

by: Double Agent

I live in Md and work for bby, i used to drive a company vehicle(GeekSquad). Best buy policy supercedes state and local law’s. If you receive more than 2moving violations etc in a 3yr period, you are disqualed, and r given 30days to find a position in store, or leading to termination. This was camera tickets they claim were mine, they identified “here say” that the Car i was driving received 3camera tickets in a 1year period. they told me to hand in keys and go home, i never could find a job in store, one was never offered after i talked to many managers, filed application’s, left resumes etc… it took bby 83days until they officially termed me. I waited till the 45th day to file for benefits… that got the ball rolling; best buy picked up there feet and started to really press the termination that has more steps to take than the monument stairs. The denied by unemployment based on following.. The claimant was discharged from best buy stores lp on 12-28-12 for having 3 moving violations within a year. The claimants conduct was either a deliberate and willful disregard of the standards of behavior which the employer has a right to expect or a series of repeated violations of employment rules proving a wanton disregard of his/her obligations to the employer under section 8-1002 of the MD unemployment insurance law. This constitutes gross misconduct in connection with the work. I read the fact sheet and it said some things i did not say. i only told the interviewer , that best buy said i had more than 2 moving viol in a 3yr and that’s why they let me go. She asked if received a warning i said no official paperwork was given to me, no burden of proof. And then she said, i will call them then call you if i need to. I was so shocked that the fact finding sheet said “they are saying that i was the driver occupying the vehicle during the 3rd violation 12/12/12. It was the red light camera violation. Yes, i have been warned that my vehicle had 2 photo ticket violations and that i needed to slow down. I thought to myself.. 1) i never would have nor did i ever say that, and 2) maybe this was generated based upon what best buy rep said and was misconstrued..To BE Continued.

Sep 04, 2011
Rating

Not sure

by: Nicole

Chris, thank you for your input. I’m not sure what the appeal is based on.

It seems to me as if the GM had it out for me from the beginning (Nov 2010 when he started). There is no way I could have worked there for four years if I had been the incompetent, mediocre employee he has claimed me to be (nothing was documented until feb 2011). Should I prepare anything for the appeal?I know everything has to be in writing, so maybe some character letters for both he and I?

Board appeals are generally too late to try to submit addition information, but you could write an affirmation letter using the laws and precedent decisions of a state to show cause for affirmation of the hearing decision.

Chris

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