STATE OF RHODE
ISLAND AND PROVIDENCE PLANTATIONS
PROVIDENCE, SC DISTRICT COURT, SIXTH DIVISION
DEAN Z. FORCIER :
v. : A.A. No. 06-2:
Department of Labor & Training, Board of Review :
DECISION
GORMAN, J. Through his complaint, plaintiff seeks judicial review and the reversal of administrative decisions finding him disqualified from receiving unemployment benefits because it was determined that he voluntarily left his job without good cause.
After the Director of the Department of Labor and Training, a referee and the department’s board of review ruled that Mr. Forcier was not eligible for benefits under the Rhode Island Employment Security Act, Rhode Island General Laws, Title 28, Chapters 42-44, this suit was filed pursuant to § 42-35-15. The plaintiff contends that the director erred in ruling that he had voluntarily left his employment without good cause and, therefore, was ineligible to receive benefits under § 28-44-17. The referee and the board both affirmed the director’s decision, and the board adopted the findings and conclusions of the referee.
An evidentiary hearing was held, and the referee made the following findings of fact:
The claimant’s last day of work as a sales representative was December 24, 2004, following which day he was on a medical leave. The claimant provided one note to his employer as requested indicating he would be able to return to work on January 18, 2005. When the claimant failed to return to work on that date that employer attempted on several occasions to contact the claimant and determine his work status. Messages were left but the claimant did not contact the employer. Neither did the claimant provide any further medical documentation concerning any continuing disability which prevented him from returning to work. In the meantime, the claimant was in receipt of Temporary Disability Insurance benefits through [the] week ending July 9, 2005. He was subsequently released to return to work by his doctor with no restrictions on September 1, 2005. Following the medical note he provided to his employer in January 2005, the claimant made no further contacts with the employer relative to his medical status or otherwise requesting a continued medical leave of absence. Knowing that he was to be released to return to work in late August 2005, he did not communicate with his employer but instead filed a claim for Employment Security [sic] benefits. The claimant’s failure to return to work on January 28, 2005 and his failure to contact the employer after repeated attempts by the employer to contact him, the employer determined in an employee status report on February 21, 2005, that he abandoned his position.
The record in this case is clear, and plaintiff offered no evidence which is inconsistent with the findings made by the referee and adopted by the board. Mr. Forcier left his job on a medical leave and the employer was advised that he would return to work in January. He never came back at all and never told his employer that he needed more time to recover or that he had suffered a new injury. In addition, telephone calls from his employer went unreturned and all efforts to reach plaintiff were unsuccessful.
Under § 28-44-17 “an individual who leaves work voluntarily without good cause shall be ineligible for . . . benefits.” Here, the employer’s belief that Mr. Forcier had abandoned his job and had no interest in returning to work was ineluctable. And there is no suggestion that the nature of the work or conditions in the work place, prompted plaintiff’s departure. The testimony and documents presented to the Department of Labor and Training, when considered in their entirety, provide reliable and substantial evidence to support the board’s decision.