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McCourtney v. Imprimis Technology

Minnesota Court of Appeals

465 N.W.2d 721 (1991)

Facts

Diane McCourtney (plaintiff) worked for Imprimis Technology, Inc. (Imprimis) (defendant) as an accounts-payable clerk. McCourtney was an outstanding employee and had no attendance problems until she gave birth to a baby who had numerous illnesses. Between January and May 1990, McCourtney was absent from work frequently in order to care for her sick child. McCourtney’s absences were all excused and due to circumstances beyond her control. After Imprimis issued a written warning to McCourtney regarding excessive absenteeism, McCourtney prepared a memo to her manager that discussed options for obtaining care for her baby when he was unable to go to his regular sitter. These options included professional in-home care and backup day-care services. McCourtney found that she was unable to afford a nanny. McCourtney also contacted 10 local day-care facilities, but only one provided care on short notice for sick infants. That facility could not guarantee that care would always be available and would not allow McCourtney to interview caregivers before they entered her home. The cost of services and inflexible timing also made the backup day-care option unsuitable. Imprimis eventually dismissed McCourtney for excessive absenteeism, and her application for unemployment-compensation benefits was denied. McCourtney appealed.

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Holding and Reasoning (Kalitowski, J.)

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Dissent (Popovich, J.)

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