Australian companies were warned on Friday that unruly office parties could bring an expensive post-Christmas hangover.
The party-giver could end up in court in duty-of-care cases involving sexual harassment, fist-fighting or drunken driving, Queensland business leader Graham Heilbronn cautioned.
”It’s sad really that it’s come down to this, but the employer seems to be the person in the gun seat, regardless of who is responsible, who participated and who did what,” Heilbronn told Australia’s AAP news agency.
”If you haven’t planned it and you haven’t set down some rules, then you are liable.”
He said that rewarding staff with visits to brothels could bring on litigation.
”An employee’s home life comes into it too, so you’d have to be a pretty stupid sort of employer in today’s climate to come at that sort of thing.” — Sapa-DPA