Drunk Driving
Bridget1
27 Posts
We have an employee who, under strong suspicion of intoxication at work, refused a breathalyzer test and insisted on driving himself home.He refused an offer of a ride from a sober colleague. There is some debate over just how much responsibility we have/had to stop the employee from driving drunk (BTW he was fired for not taking the breathalyzer, so technically, he was not longer an employee when he drove home).
Should we have restrained him? Called the police and reported him? What if he wasn't actually drunk (doubtful, but always a possibility)?
Comments
I don't know that attempting to physically restrain him would ever be a good idea, but certainly calling the police to report that you believed he was intoxicated, along with telling them the type of car he was driving, license plate etc. I knew someone who got arrested for DUI after a convenience store clerk smelled alcohol on her breath while she was making a purchase. She left, the clerk called the police the police found her and stopped her.
Yes, it's a distinct possibiltiy that the person is a danger on the road and given your options I think that's your best bet. In terms of how responsible (liable) your company actually would be, I would check with a lawyer, but my guess is that it's not a situation where you "served" him alcohol like at a bar--instead it sounds like he brought his own and/or keeps it on your premises. You didn't help create his state of intoxication.