27. Did the Claimant Take Reasonable Steps to Preserve His or Her Job?

Other than in sexual, racial or other unreasonable harassment cases, discussed above, an employee has a duty to take all reasonable steps to preserve the employment relationship before resigning, unless such efforts would be futile. Where an employee has failed to do this, he or she is said to have caused his or her own unemployment and his or her leaving is not considered involuntary because there was, or may have been, an alternative. Review examiners appear to take this matter very seriously. Following are some cases on this point.

Requesting Leave of Absence or Transfer to Another Position

Leaving work without first requesting a potentially available leave of absence or transfer is a frequent reason for denial of benefits. This requirement is more strictly applied in leavings due to urgent and compelling personal reasons, but can also arise in good cause cases. See Question 30. In Dohoney v. Director of the Div. of Employment Sec., 377 Mass. 333, 386 N.E.2d 10 (1979), for example, the claimant was disqualified after she left without applying for maternity leave or discussing with anyone her plans to return after childbirth.

In Reissfelder v. Director of the Div. of Employment Sec., 391 Mass. 1003, 460 N.E.2d 604 (1984), the claimant left work after unsuccessfully requesting a day off to go to court on a custody matter. She was disqualified because she failed to provide her supervisor with her reason for needing to go to court, but might have been given the time off, and preserved her job, had she done so.  Note:  It is illegal for an employer to discharge, penalize, or threaten to discharge or penalize an employee who has taken time off to testify in a criminal action if the employee is a victim or is subpoened to testify if the employee has notified her employer prior to the day she is required to be in court.  G.L. c. 268, § 14B.

In some situations, transfer to another position will cure or diminish the employee's problem with his or her current position. For example, if the employee is physically unable to do one job, DUA will expect the employee to request transfer to a less demanding position, if one might be available. Again, if no such position is available, or the claimant can show the employer would not have granted the transfer request, no request should be required. And an employee should not be required to request transfer to a position with substantially lower pay or much less favorable conditions

Notifying the Employer of the Problem with the Employee's Job

A claimant's leaving may be considered voluntary if he or she quits without first informing the employer of the problem with the job and giving the employer an opportunity to take steps to solve it. For example, an employee whose child care responsibilities change so that they conflict with his or her hours of work should notify the employer of the problem to give the employer a chance to offer the employee different work hours. An employer might also be able to offer an injured employee a transfer to light duty. Similarly, a multi-state employer might be able to offer an employee who must move out of state a transfer to a workplace in the new state.