PAUL J. PLATT, APPELLANT,
v.
UNEMPLOYMENT APPEALS COMMISSION AND CLUB AT PELICAN BAY, INC., APPELLEES

Fla. 2d DCA | 1993-05-14
No. 92-03442
RYDER, A.C.J., and ALTENBERND, J., concur.
618 So. 2d 340 Florida District Court of Appeal, Second District (1993) Caution
Cited by 18 cases

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Synopsis

Paul Platt, a locker room attendant at a private golf club, quit his job after working 70-80 hours per week without a full day off during the busy winter season, despite requesting additional staff. The court reversed the unemployment appeals commission's denial of benefits, finding that the employer's failure to provide promised additional help created intolerable working conditions justifying his departure under Florida's unemployment compensation law.


Holding

Yes. Working conditions that required 70-80 hours per week without a full day off, combined with the employer's failure to provide promised additional staff despite repeated requests, constituted good cause attributable to the employer for Platt to quit his job, entitling him to unemployment compensation benefits.


Headnotes

[1] An employee quits employment for good cause attributable to the employer when working conditions become intolerable due to the employer's failure to provide necessary add…

[2] The standard for "good cause" to quit employment under unemployment compensation law is that which would impel the average able-bodied qualified worker to quit.

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Key Quotes

“The expression "good cause," as it is contemplated by Florida's Unemployment Compensation Law, describes that which would impel the average able-bodied qualified worker to quit his or her job.”

Establishes the legal standard for 'good cause' in unemployment cases under Florida law

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Facts & Procedural History

Platt worked as a locker room attendant at Club at Pelican Bay earning $300/week. During peak winter season from November 1991 onward, facility usage …

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Opinion of the Court
FRANK, Judge.

FRANK, Judge.

Paul J. Platt challenges the decision of the unemployment appeals commission affirming the appeal referee’s denial of unemployment benefits. We disagree with the conclusion that Platt left his employment without good cause and we reverse.

Platt worked as a locker room attendant at the Club at Pelican Bay, a private golf and tennis club, where he earned a salary of $300 per week. Platt and one other attendant were responsible for monitoring the men’s locker room from approximately 7:00 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. daily. During the peak hours of noon until 4:00 p.m. each day, both attendants were required to be present at the locker room.

In November 1991, at the start of the winter season, use of the Pelican Bay’s facilities increased, forcing Platt to work seventy to eighty hours per week. He informed his supervisor that he and his fellow attendant needed help in the locker room. The supervisor agreed and promised the hiring of additional help, but none was provided. Platt left the job on January 4, 1992. On that day Platt had worked sixty-four days, including holidays, without a full day off.

Platt applied for, but was denied, unemployment compensation benefits. The appeals referee affirmed the determination of the claims adjudicator, concluding as follows:

The evidence presented shows that the claimant was allowed to set his own hours of work, within given perimeters [sic]. Although the claimant felt compelled by the employer to work approximately 70 hours per week, there was no evidence presented that the employer required the claimant to work that number of hours. When the claimant complained about the hours to the employer, the employer told the claimant that they would hire additional help.

The evidence presented shows that the claimant was a conscious [sic] and industrious employee[;] however, there was no testimony or evidence presented that the employer compelled such behavior from the claimant. Even if viewed in a light most favorable to the claimant, it cannot be said that the reason for the claimant’s leaving of this employment was attributable to the employer.

Consequently, it must be held that the claimant voluntarily left employment with this employer but not for good cause attributable to the employing unit, (emphasis added).

Although we accept the appeals referee’s findings of fact, we reject the legal conclusion that Platt abandoned his job without good cause attributable to the employer. The expression “good cause,” as it is contemplated by Florida’s Unemployment Compensation Law, describes that which would impel the average able-bodied qualified worker to quit his or her job. Marcelo v. Department of Labor and Employment Sec., 453 So. 2d 927 (Fla. 2d DCA1984). In our view, the present factual setting reveals working conditions which, if not reformed by the hiring of additional employees, would cause a reasonable worker to quit.

We note, for instance, that Platt’s fellow attendant at the golf club quit the locker room on the same day as Platt and for similar reasons.

We agree with Platt’s assessment that the failure of Pelican Bay to secure extra staff during the peak of the winter season created an intolerable condition of employment and provided him with good cause to leave. See Iglesias v. Eagle National Bank of Miami, 598 So. 2d 262 (Fla. 3d DCA1992) (claimant whose “repeated requests for additional help fell on deaf ears” quit his job for good cause attributable to employer).

We reverse the order under review and remand with directions to accord Platt unemployment compensation benefits.

RYDER, A.C.J., and ALTENBERND, J., concur.


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Citator

Cited By

  • Tourte v. Oriole OF Naples, Inc., 696 So. 2d 1283 (Fla. 2d DCA 1997)
    …la. 2d DCA 1993); State, Dept. of Commerce, Div. of Employment Sec. v. Dietz, 349 So. 2d 1226 (Fla. 2d DCA 1977). There are also cases which appear to hold that the same question is strictly a matter of law. See Platt v. Unemployment Appeals Comm’n, 618 So. 2d 340 (Fla. 2d DCA 1993); Ritenour v. Unemployment Appeals Comm’n, 570 So. 2d 1106 (Fla. 5th DCA 1990); Beard v. State, Dept. Of Commerce, Div. of Employment Sec., 369 So. 2d 382 (Fla. 2d DCA 1979). And, there are still other cases which opine that the is…
  • …cumstances in a given case “would have impelled the average, able-minded, qualified worker to give up his employment.” Lewis v. Lakeland Health Care Center, Inc., 685 So. 2d 876, 879 (Fla. 2d DCA 1996); see also Platt v. Unemployment Appeals Comm’n, 618 So. 2d 340, 341 (Fla. 2d DCA 1993). An employee is not required to accept undue verbal abuse from an employer. See Gollet Enterprises East, Inc. v. Florida Unemployment Appeals Comm’n, 630 So. 2d 1166 (Fla. 4th DCA 1993); see also Grossman v. Jewish Community…
  • Carey McANALLY & Co., Inc. v. Woodring, 629 So. 2d 301 (Fla. 2d DCA 1993)
    …day without discrimination to clean. Further, Woodring was the only employee who refused to perform the duties. That factor is relevant when determining whether the average able-bodied worker would quit the job. Platt v. Unemployment Appeals Comm’n, 618 So. 2d 340 (Fla. 2d DCA 1993). Based on these factors, we reverse the order of the Commission and direct that the Commission reinstate the decision of the referee. Reversed and remanded. CAMPBELL, A.C.J., and HALL, J., concur.…

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