| Issue: |
Sub-Issue 1: |
Sub-Issue 2: |
Sub-Issue 3: |
| misconduct |
dereliction of duty |
Internet misuse |
|
Summary:
The Commission determined that the claimant had lost his employment as a result of his own misconduct. The claimant said in his claim for benefits that his employer accused him of visiting inappropriate Internet sites. The employer indicated on the ROE that the claimant had been dismissed because of serious professional misconduct. The claimant was a case worker who worked with troubled youth. An investigation of the claimant's computer revealed that the claimant spent his time on chat sites of a sexual nature involving teenagers. The times the claimant visited the sites in question corresponded to his hours of work and the claimant's Internet address appeared on all the messages in question. Given that the claimant worked with young people, his conduct was deemed unacceptable and he was dismissed. The claimant confirmed that he had done what the employer accused him of doing. He added that he believed that he was not doing anything wrong by "chatting" in this way with clients and that his employer did not tell him that this was wrong. The appeal by the claimant is dismissed.
