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To Be (Constructively Discharged), or Not To Be...
In White v. Fort Sanders-Park W. Med. Ctr., the Tennessee Court of Appeals recently re-affirmed its holdings related to constructive discharge. White, a licensed practical nurse, was suspended for dispensing medication outside the scope of her LPN license. The medical center subsequently offered her a transfer to another facility. Rather than accept the transfer, White resigned and alleged that she had been constructively discharged in violation of the Public Protection Act for refusing to remain silent about "illegal activities" at work, namely that the center was understaffed and unsafe.
The Court of Appeals held that White failed to show specific admissible facts that realistically challenged the medical center's legitimate, non-discriminatory reason (dispensing unauthorized medication) for her suspension. The Court also held that the Plaintiff's claims did not implicate either of the two types of constructive discharge:
(1) hostile work environment claims, where an employer permits its employee's working conditions to become so intolerable that resignation is the employee's only reasonable alternative; and
(2) demotion of executive employees, in which an employer reduces an employee holding a position of dignity and privilege to an inferior status.
The Court held that White had failed to show that her working conditions were so difficult or unpleasant that a reasonable person in a similar position would have felt compelled to resign. The Court noted that changes in duties that make work more difficult or inconvenient for the employee generally do not rise to the level of constructive discharge. As for the second type of constructive discharge, Plaintiff could not make out a claim for loss of position of dignity and privilege because she did not have an employment contract, much less a position-specific one. |
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