Read the following case and determine what the arbitrator might have ruled.

Sandro Smith, 45, was a cable man at the Copper Valley Copper Mine in central British Columbia, southwest of Kamloops. He was hired to work at the mine in 1997 and his shift schedule consisted of four days on followed by four days off, alternating between day and night shifts.

In 2008, Smith was disciplined on two occasions. The first was for not wearing proper safety gloves while on the job and the second was for failing to call in when he was absent one day.

On Feb. 19, 2009, Smith was operating a truck in the mine while two co-workers were moving shovels. His truck was connected to cables that held part of the shovels while the other workers guided them. At one point, they were all working on various parts of the rig – Smith untangling a knot in the cable while two others pulled the cable down to untie the “pot head” part of the shovel. While his two co-workers were bent over the pot head taking it apart, Smith got in his truck and, without checking to see if the others were done, drove the truck quickly forward. The truck pulled the cable tight and lifted the pot head, narrowly missing one of the co-workers. However, the cable hit the other co-worker and threw him ten feet away, knocking off his hard hat.

The workers finished moving the rest of the shovel but the co-worker who had been knocked down said it was “a serious deal” and he had to report the incident. Smith reportedly asked his co-worker not to because nobody had been hurt and “things happen and are kept among the boys,” but the co-worker insisted on reporting it to the foreman.

Worker in trouble after accident in mine

Smith worked the next day without incident and then was off for four days. During this time off, Smith went to his union president and asked him for advice. The union president agreed it was serious and there were several potential outcomes, including the possible termination of Smith’s employment.

A few days later, Smith began counseling with a family therapist, to whom he revealed that he believed he had a cocaine addiction. However, he didn’t reveal this to management of the mine.

When Smith returned to work on Feb. 26, he was called to a safety meeting with management and the union’s occupational health and safety co-chair. Smith was very nervous and at one point had to stop the meeting because he was upset. When they discussed the Feb. 19 incident, Smith said he was very glad his co-worker had not been seriously hurt and he was hit hard by the fact he almost caused serious harm to someone. However, he still didn’t mention anything about any drug problem.

After the safety meeting, Smith was brought to a disciplinary meeting where he was told he would be able to “tell your story.” Smith explained he moved his truck so quickly at the time because he wanted to get traffic moving and denied doing anything wrong on purpose. He initially denied asking the co-worker not to report it but then said he “might have mentioned it.”

Worker would rather quit than be fired

After the disciplinary meeting, Smith discussed his situation with union officials. They agreed he might be fired and Smith was worried the effect his firing would have on his wife and family, including some of his wife’s family who worked at the mine. He asked the union president to find out if Copper Valley would be willing to let him resign instead so a termination wouldn’t be on his record.

The union president discussed things with the mine’s management and returned to Smith, informing him Copper Valley was planning on firing him. However, it had agreed to give him the option of quitting instead.

Smith accepted the mine’s offer and signed a letter of resignation it drew up, making his resignation effective immediately. He was escorted to his locker to clear out his belongings and then driven home by a member of Copper Valley’s security team.

A few days later, on March 2, Smith told the union he felt he had a cocaine addiction and his decision to quit had come under duress. He also claimed his addiction combined with personal problems he was experiencing had caused him to be tired and stressed on Feb. 19, contributing to the accident. He provided a letter from his therapist that said his treatment for cocaine addiction was going well and his prognosis for recovery was “excellent” and he would be a better employee once he was clean. Smith had told his therapist he was distressed about the resignation and he regretted it.

The therapist later determined the accident may have caused an “erratic, highly anxious state of mind” for Smith that led to trouble sleeping and symptoms of mania. He claimed this “manic state of mind” contributed to his decision to quit and once his mental health improved, he regretted the decision.

The union filed a grievance, claiming Smith wasn’t in a position to make a proper decision to resign and he hadn’t demonstrated any desire to resign outside of that stressful day. It also argued his cocaine addiction affected his decision.

The board made it clear the onus was on Smith to prove he had a medical condition and it affected his actions when he quit.