Willits v. Job Service North Dakota, 799 N.W.2d 374

Willits, a licensed practical nurse, worked full time at Circle of Nations School on federal property in Wahpeton; she claimed licensing guidance and training scope issues affected her duties.
She trained staff to administer medications and later sought to limit training to only qualified personnel; boards allegedly advised she could not train staff without supervision.
Willits argued training staff fell outside her nursing license and that continuing otherwise would require her to quit; she notified the school she could not work that day after the November 10 meeting.
Administrators discussed her license concerns and planned oversight and continued normal operations pending further information; a doctor would provide oversight if needed.
Willits quit on November 12, 2009, after leaving a voicemail, without discussion with Gilbertson or a resolution of the concerns; Job Service denied unemployment benefits, later affirmed on appeal.
The district court affirmed the agency’s decision after remand findings concluded Willits did not inform the employer she would quit if required to train nonqualified staff, and she failed to preserve the employment relationship.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether Willits quit with good cause attributable to employer	Willits argues good cause due to licensing scope concerns.	Employer contends she failed to preserve employment and quit without good cause.	Yes; Willits did not prove good cause attributable to employer; reasonable preservation of employment wasn’t shown.
Whether Willits reasonably attempted to preserve employment	Willits sought guidance and expressed concerns before quitting.	School attempted to investigate and resolve concerns; Willits left before resolution.	Yes; court held Willits failed to make a reasonable effort to preserve employment.
Standard of review and credibility in agency findings	Appeals should reweigh credibility and findings.	Court defers to agency findings if supported by evidence.	Review limited to whether a reasoning mind could conclude the referee’s factual conclusions from the weight of the evidence.

Baier v. Job Serv. North Dakota, 2004 ND 27, 673 N.W.2d 923 (ND 2004) (balance of unemployment goals; remedial statute; liberally construed in employee’s favor)
Newland v. Job Serv. North Dakota, 460 N.W.2d 118 (ND 1990) (remedial statute; good cause requires efforts to preserve employment)
Hjelden v. Job Serv. North Dakota, 1999 ND 234, 603 N.W.2d 500 (ND 1999) (issues of whether quit and good cause are factual questions; defer to agency on findings)
Esselman v. Job Serv. North Dakota, 548 N.W.2d 400 (ND 1996) (employee must preserve employment; quitting before resolution supports denial)
Carlson v. Job Serv. North Dakota, 548 N.W.2d 389 (ND 1996) (quits before employer can address concerns may bar eligibility)
Von Ruden v. North Dakota Workforce Safety and Ins. Fund, 2008 ND 166, 755 N.W.2d 885 (ND 2008) (agency findings deferential review; credibility reserved for referee)
Schweitzer v. Job Serv. North Dakota, 2009 ND 139, 770 N.W.2d 238 (ND 2009) (standard of review: whether a reasonable mind could find the referee’s facts supported by weight of the evidence)
Spectrum Care LLC v. Stevick, 2006 ND 155, 718 N.W.2d 593 (ND 2006) (weighing evidence; defer to referee’s credibility determinations)