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Partin v. Merchants & Farmers Bank3/11/2002
wing compensation for mental injuries unless they result from stress that, by its nature, is sudden, unexpected, and extraordinary in the usual course of employment in that working environment. Although the accident requirement must still be fulfilled as explained above, the limitation on claims should now be found in subsection 1021(7)(b).
In this case, Claimant personally found her demotion to be extraordinary and unexpected because she did not know that the bank was displeased with her management skills and she was quite settled in her career. Yet by its nature, a demotion for failing to satisfactorily perform one's job creates stress that is neither unexpected nor extraordinary in the usual course of employment at a bank. That is not to say that a demotion could not be handled in such a way that would make it unexpected or extraordinary. For example, if an employer used violence in demoting an employee, it would perhaps cause stress that is unexpected and extraordinary. In addition, an event such as a robbery would perhaps cause stress that is unexpected and extraordinary at a bank, regardless of how it is conducted. In this case, however, the bank explained to Claimant that it was demoting her to teller because she lacked managerial skills, and it is undisputed that the bank did so in a calm and professional manner. Such a situation does not create stress that is unexpected or extraordinary in the usual course of employment at a bank.
The court of appeal properly rejected a subjective test for evaluating subsection 1021(7)(b), but it concluded that the stress in this case was "sudden, unexpected, and extraordinary." The court considered the nature of Claimant's infraction (which the court characterized as a "mere[ ] attempt[ ] to correct a $5.00 error between two tellers") in light of the positive tenor of Claimant's personnel file and Claimant's thirteen years as a supervisor, and concluded that the demotion and salary cut was "far beyond what a reasonable person would expect as appropriate company discipline." Partin v. Merchants & Farmers Bank, 00-1113, p. 7 (La. App. 3 Cir. 5/9/01), 783 So.2d 652, 657. The court of appeal's analysis went beyond evaluating the nature of the stress into evaluating the wrongfulness or unfairness of the bank's personnel action, which is properly the subject of an action at tort law rather than a workers' compensation claim. A personnel action is not necessarily extraordinary because it is unfair from the employee's point of view. Although the court of appeal adopted an objective standard regarding subsection (7)(b), it nevertheless assessed the effect of the demotion from the Claimant's perspective when it considered her prior performance and her view of the five-dollar incident. Considering simply the nature of the stress itself in this case, we find that a demotion for lack of managerial skills creates stress that is neither unexpected nor extraordinary in the usual course of employment at a bank. We conclude, therefore, that Claimant's mental injury is not compensable under La. R.S. 23:1021(7)(b).
DECREE
For the foregoing reasons, the award in favor of Claimant is reversed.
REVERSED.
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