An employee is injured at the place of employment when he burns himself in the kitchen while cleaning up after a meeting with other employees and his supervisor. the injury would not have occurred had the employee not been drinking with other employees during the meeting.

• A. the injury is compensable because the drinking was condoned by the employee's supervisor
• B. the injury is not compensable because attendance at the meeting was voluntary
• C. the injury is compensable because attendance at the meeting was not voluntary
• D. the injury is compensable because the consumption of alcohol occurred during working hours

Answer: (A)

In California workers’ compensation, a claim is compensable when the injury arises out of and in the course of employment. When the employer creates or approves the risk that leads to injury, that risk is connected to the workplace. Here, the employee was drinking with coworkers during a meeting that included the supervisor, and the supervisor condoned that drinking. That means the hazardous situation—drinking during a work-related gathering—was introduced or approved by the employer, tying the injury to the employment context. Since the injury would not have occurred but for that employer-approved activity, it falls within workers’ compensation coverage.

The fact that attendance at the meeting is voluntary or that drinking happened during work hours is less decisive than the employer’s approval of the drinking. The key point is that the risk came from a work context created or condoned by the supervisor, making the injury compensable.