Constructive Voluntary Quit Doctrine: Underpaid, Under Pressure And Under Protected.

An employee went on stress leave one month after she filed a claim with the Department of Fair Employment and Housing for ongoing sexual harassment. When her doctor cleared her to go back to work, her lawyer had an electronic conversation with the employer’s lawyer regarding assurances the employee wanted before she returned to work. The employer’s lawyer characterized the request for assurances as the imposition of unreasonable conditions, fired her and then fought the employee’s request for unemployment insurance under the seldom-used constructive voluntary quit doctrine. The Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board denied her claim for benefits. Contending she had not constructively quit, the employee sought extraordinary relief in the superior court, and the trial court granted her administrative writ of mandate. The appellate court affirmed, noting the constructive voluntary quit doctrine does not apply to those situations in which an employee makes requests or inquiries about employment matters, “even though the employer may consider such speech irritating or ungracious.” (Kelley v. California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board (Merle Norman Cosmetics, Inc.) (Cal. App. Second Dist., Div. 8; February 10, 2014) 223 Cal.App.4th 1067, [167 Cal.Rptr.3d 802].)