Coulter Roache offers Christmas party advice

GEELONG law firm Coulter Roache has offered some useful advice to both employers and employees about the legal implications of the office Christmas party.

The firm’s head of litigation and dispute resolution Martin Reid was the guest speaker at Bizz3228’s last networking function for the year, held at RACV Torquay Resort on Wednesday.

In conversation with Bizz3228’s Cathy Stacey and Katrina White, Mr Reid said the venue for a company’s Christmas party should be effectively treated as an extension of the workplace.

This meant employers had to provide a duty of care and occupational health and safety – typically covered by responsible serving of alcohol, and may also have to consider vicarious liability, in which employers can be held legally responsible for acts of discrimination or harassment that occur in the workplace or in connection with a person’s employment.

He said one example was a Geelong employer who provided a bus to Lamby’s after the Christmas party, which meant the employer still had legal responsibility for employees at that venue and for an incident that happened later.

“It was only because they put them on the bus that they were liable.

“The best thing is to define when the party finishes and how they’re going to get home.

“Generally, if you pour booze into someone and then just let them leave, the law’s not going to like that.”

He said the use of illegal substances at parties was a difficult legal area from an employer’s perspective.

“There’s a really blurred line about where the private lives of employees and their employers cross.

“The courts have said you can’t make judgement on what an employee has done simply because it’s viewed as unlawful by the police.”

In a discussion about the duty of care, South Barwon MP Andrew Katos observed that Victorian MPs worked extremely long hours – from 9.30am to 11.30pm – during debate about the voluntary assisted dying bill, which would mean the MP’s employer, the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, may have been liable if any MPs suffered an injury on the way home.

“I’m glad nothing happened, but it would have been an interesting test case.”