M Civ JI 105.05 Employment Discrimination (Constructive Discharge) - Definition

The plaintiff [ resigned / left the job ]. Plaintiff claims that [ he / she ] was constructively discharged by the defendant. Defendant claims that the plaintiff voluntarily [ resigned / left the job ]. Plaintiff has the burden of proving that [ he / she ] was constructively discharged.

Constructive discharge means that an employer deliberately made an employee’s working conditions so intolerable that the employee was forced to [ resign / leave the job ].

It is not necessary to show that defendant intended plaintiff to [ resign / leave the job ], so long as you find that a reasonable person in the same circumstances as plaintiff would have felt compelled to [ resign / leave the job ].

Note on Use

This instruction is applicable in cases where an employer is indifferent to or tolerant of harassment of plaintiff by coemployees. Easter v Jeep Corp, 750 F2d 520 (CA 6, 1984).

Comment

See Jenkins v American Red Cross, 141 Mich App 785; 369 NW2d 223 (1985); LeGalley v Bronson Community Schools, 127 Mich App 482; 339 NW2d 223 (1983); Bourque v Powell Electrical Mfg Co, 617 F2d 61 (CA 5, 1980); Alicea Rosado v Garcia Santiago, 562 F2d 114 (CA 1, 1977); Held v Gulf Oil Co, 684 F2d 427 (CA 6, 1982); Easter.

History

M Civ JI 105.05 was added October 1985.