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continue working. NWA gave Mr. Stephens no end date for his
position in Minnesota. NWA no longer required Mr. Stephens to
perform any services whatsoever in Georgia once he was bumped.
Mr. Stephens introduced evidence that he searched for work in
Georgia and actually accepted a position at Lockheed Martin that
ultimately was not available due to a hiring freeze. Although
Mrs. Stephens and the family remained in Georgia with occasional
visits from Mr. Stephens while he worked in Minnesota, this fact
alone does not dictate that Mr. Stephens’ tax home was in
Georgia, where the family residence was located. Unlike
traveling salespersons who may be required to return to the home
city occasionally between business trips, Mr. Stephens’ business
ties to Georgia ceased when he was bumped.
The Court understands that the NWA mechanics’ lives were
unsettled and disrupted. Mechanics did not know how long they
would have a job in one specific location. They only knew the
system was based on seniority. They could bump less senior
employees, and they could be bumped by more senior employees.
While we acknowledge that Mr. Stephens would have liked to return
to Georgia, Mr. Stephens did not know when such a return would be
possible due to the NWA seniority system and the Georgia job
market. The likelihood of Mr. Stephens’ return to an NWA
position in Georgia depended on NWA’s needs for mechanics there
as well as the choices of more senior mechanics. Mr. Stephens
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