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 have not 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 the attendance at the meeting was voluntary.
• C. The injury is compensable because the attendance at the meeting was not voluntary.
• D. The injury is compensable because the consumption of alcohol occurred during work hours.

Answer: (A)

The main idea is that injuries can be compensable if they arise out of and in the course of employment, even when they involve risk created by activities at a work function, as long as the employer condones or sponsors those activities. In this scenario, the injury happened after a meeting where alcohol was consumed and the supervisor participated and condoned the drinking. That makes the drinking part of the work setting and ties the risk to employment, so the injury is compensable. If the drinking had not been condoned by the employer, or attendance were strictly voluntary with no employer encouragement, the outcome could be different. Simply having alcohol at work or during work hours isn’t enough by itself; the critical factor is the employer’s approval and participation, which links the injury to the job.