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Michael
McKnight, a teacher in the Philadelphia School District for over twenty years,
was fired after he was arrested and charged with sexual assault in his home
against an 18-year-old former male student. McKnight sued, alleging that the
school district failed to provide him with a COBRA election notice and so
denied him his right to continuation of health coverage at a group rate. In
response, the school district contended that it was not legally obligated to
provide McKnight with COBRA notification because his dismissal was based on
gross misconduct.
Termination
for gross misconduct is not a qualifying event, which would have required the
school district to notify McKnight of his COBRA options. The term "gross
misconduct" is not defined under ERISA, and case law does not provide a clear
definition. After a thorough search of relevant court decisions, the judge in
this case defined gross misconduct as "action that may be intentional, wanton,
willful, reckless, or in deliberate indifference to an employer's interest. It
is misconduct beyond mere minor breaches of employee standards, but conduct
that would be considered gross in nature." (Alcohol and drug abuse were cited
as examples that constitute gross misconduct.)
McKnight's
position was that his arrest did not constitute gross misconduct because there
was no conviction and the charges were dismissed after an investigation.
However, there was no legal basis for this argument. The charges against
McKnight were not dismissed until four months after his termination. The school
district acted reasonably when it learned of McKnight's arrest and determined
that it need not offer COBRA benefits. Evidence was submitted to show that the
school board presented McKnight with two opportunities to respond to its
decision to terminate his employment on charges of immorality. At both
conferences, he refused to respond to questions and denied any
wrongdoing.
(McKnight v.
School District of Philadelphia, US Dist Ct, ED Pennsylvania, Dkt. No. 00-573,
April 18, 2001) |
