Employee caught between estranged couple who were her bosses; stormed out of office after argument with one of them
This instalment of You Make the Call involves an argument at work that led to confusion over whether an employee quit or was fired.
Rodanna Oakes was an administration officer for Maritime Fastening, a provider of fastening systems and devices in Moncton. She was hired in April 2008 and worked for the next year without any problem. In mid-2009, she took on some administrative work for a restaurant in the same building with the same owners.
Maritime was owned by a married couple, Dana and Debbie Snitch, who were having marriage troubles and were separated. They both worked at Maritime but had an arrangement where they worked at different times. However, some of their animosity leaked into the workplace.
On Friday, Aug. 7, 2009, Debbie Snitch asked Oakes to leave a note on Dana Snitch’s desk indicating she would be in to work on the weekend. Dana Snitch emailed Oakes about exact times but Oakes didn’t respond. Two days later, he called Oakes at home for more details, but Oakes didn’t like talking about work matters on a Sunday. She told
Snitch not to call her at home on a Sunday again.
The next day, Aug. 10, there was some tension in the office because of the telephone conversation. Oakes decided she would talk to Dana Snitch about a raise because she had taken on the administrative work for the restaurant.
When Oakes entered Snitch’s office, he was preparing product pricing for clients. He didn’t like being disturbed and Oakes’ insistence on discussing a raise led to an argument. Their voices became loud and were heard elsewhere in the office, including by a customer. The argument culminated with Oakes angrily storming out of Snitch’s office. She turned around and said “You can take this f---ing job and shove it up your f---ing a-- and you wouldn’t know a friend if one hit you in the head!” Oakes then got her things and left the office.
Oakes visited Debbie Snitch later that day, who said things would work out. Her husband went to talk to Dana Snitch, who accused Snitch of being abusive towards his wife and claimed she shouldn’t be doing work for the restaurant without getting paid for it. When Oakes’ husband asked if the matter was resolved, Snitch said, “We will see.”
The next day, Aug. 11, Oakes called a co-worker to say she wasn’t coming into work that day. However, she didn’t speak to Snitch. Snitch believed she had quit so he hired a replacement and changed the locks. When she showed up the next morning, Snitch said he was surprised to see her because she had quit. Oakes responded by saying he fired her. After a short exchange, Oakes cleared out her desk and left.
You Make the Call
Did Oakes quit when she stormed out of the office?
OR
Did Maritime terminate her employment by not allowing her to come back?
If you said Oakes quit when she angrily left the office, you’re right. The New Brunswick Labour and Employment Board found Maritime had enough evidence to conclude Oakes had clearly and unequivocally resigned from her job from her actions on Aug. 10 and 11.
The board found Oakes indicated her intention to quit when she expressed as much to Snitch as she left his office and then the workplace. When she didn’t show up for work the next day or contact him directly, that confirmed her decision, said the board.
Since Oakes didn’t contact him after the argument, all Snitch had to go on was her statement on Aug. 10 and her subsequent absence. It was reasonable for him to assume she had quit her job and look after the company’s interests by finding a replacement, said the court.
Though Oakes provided a doctor’s note saying she was “unable to work for medical reasons” through mid-August 2009, the board found there was nothing indicating there was any “mental or emotional aberration” that affected her decision and actions of quitting.
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