Labor & Employment Law

Gun possession at works kills workers comp claim

Stanford Isbell won a jury verdict on his claim that the employer discharged him because he had filed a workers compensation claim. The Alabama Court of Civil Appeals reversed.

There was uncontroverted evidence that Isbell had taken his .22 caliber target pistol inside the employer's physical plant and had placed it inside a padlocked tool box. Isbell failed to rebut the employer's showing that the discharge was based, in whole or in part, upon Isbell's open possession of a firearm on the employer's premises.

One element of a retaliatory discharge claim under the Alabama statute is a showing that the discharge was based "solely" on the filing of a workers compensation claim. The court concluded that Isbell's discharge was not based solely on his filing of a claim.

M & J Materials v. Isbell (Alabama Ct App 05/07/2010)

Full post as published by Ross' Employment Law Blog on May 12, 2010 (boomark / email).