Are there any legal ramifications allowing employees to expense alcohol on a business trip?

Rita Risser responds:

You would think with all the alcohol being expensed or provided by companies, that there would be loads of cases on this. In fact, there are very few.

For example, there are a few cases where sales employees have tried to claim worker's compensation for alcoholism, on the theory that the company "forced" them to drink with their customers, therefore they became alcoholics, and therefore they were injured on the job. The employees have lost those cases.

There have been cases where the employer provided alcohol at a company function, an employee got drunk, then drove away and injured an innocent person. In some states, the employer can be held liable the same as any other social host. If the employee gets drunk at an employer party and injures him or herself, the employer may be liable for those injuries in workers comp. But I've never seen an employer held liable in such cases when the employee was on a trip and expensed the alcohol.

Alcohol is involved in a lot of sexual harassment cases. Alcoholism is a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Alcohol is sometimes involved in violence situations in the workplace.

For all these reasons, it may be prudent to limit drinking to the extent that you can. For example, only allow employees to expense two drinks a day.

Thanks for a thought-provoking question!