A foreman and coworkers drink after work; a coworker who is intoxicated backs his truck and injures himself while leaving. Is the injury compensable under California workers' compensation?

• A. Yes because of the compensable consequences rule.
• B. Yes because the drinking was authorized by the foreman.
• C. No because the alcohol was a proximate cause of the injury.
• D. No because the injury was caused by the intoxication of the employee.

Answer: (D)

The key idea is that California workers’ compensation does not cover injuries that are caused by the employee’s own voluntary intoxication. If the intoxication is the reason the injury occurred, benefits are denied because the risk (drinking and driving after work) is personal, not a work-related hazard.

In this scenario, the coworker was intoxicated from drinking after work and then injured himself while backing his truck as he was leaving. The injury stems from his own intoxication, not from a work-caused incident or a required job-related risk. Therefore, the claim is not compensable.

Even if drinking were authorized by the foreman, that does not change the rule—the law bars compensation when the injury is caused by the employee’s intoxication. The compensable consequences rule doesn’t apply here because there isn’t a compensable work-related injury with subsequent compensable consequences.