In re the Claim of Monroe
Opinion of the Court
—Appeal from a decision of the Unemployment Insurance Appeal Board, filed March 28, 2001, which ruled that claimant was disqualified from receiving unemployment insurance benefits because his employment was terminated due to misconduct.
Claimant was employed for over 14 years as a golf course groundskeeper. In August 2000, he was counseled by his immediate supervisor and departmental director that he would be terminated if his insubordinate behavior and hostile attitude continued. About six weeks later, claimant became incensed when approval for his proposed vacation was withdrawn because of staffing shortages. Upon learning that another employee had been allowed to leave work early, claimant confronted his supervisor with the contention that he had been treated unfairly. He then walked off the job, expressing vulgarities as he went, and was fired a short time later.
Substantial evidence supports the decision that claimant lost his employment under disqualifying circumstances. .This Court has held that an employee’s disrespectful or vulgar statements to a supervisor may constitute disqualifying misconduct (see, Matter of Kim [Commissioner of Labor], 262 AD2d 693; Matter of Hayes [Commissioner of Labor], 249 AD2d 665), especially when uttered after a prior warning (see, Matter of Crumel
Peters, J.P., Spain, Carpinello, Mugglin and Rose, JJ., concur. Ordered that the decision is affirmed, without costs.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.