Sex and injury compo claims may spell doom for out of town work trips

The issue might have been murkier had the male partner been a work colleague but ComCare reportedly noted the woman was having sex with "an acquaintance, who had no connection with her work". Thus it believed the resultant injuries could not be regarded as being sustained during the course of her employment.

ComCare believed the woman's sexual activity was "not obviously involved" in her employer's requirement for an overnight stay, was not of any benefit to the employer, was "a frolic of her own", and "took her outside the course of her employment by ... engaging in an activity unrelated to her employment and not positively supported by her employer".

The issue of employees being injured while socialising on work trips or conferences away from home and seeking compensation or WorkCover claims is worrying nervous employers.

Increasingly employers staging work retreats or staff weekends away or staff conferences are trying to get staff to sign waivers and releases to absolve the employer of responsibility if the employee is injured while away from home.

These waivers are not legally enforceable but it shows how concerned employers are becoming.

While employers might argue they cannot be held liable for injuries due to sex sessions in out of town motels, the issue of employer responsibility needs better clarification.

It's a question of what part of a trip away is deemed 'work' and what part is not connected with any work or work- organised event.

For example I had a case for a sales company that staged a national conference retreat on the Gold Coast. One night, after a work session ended, an out of town participant left the work group, went off on his own to a Surfers Paradise strip club where he became involved in a fight .

He was injured and spent time in hospital and later tried to claim WorkCover compensation saying it happened during a work-organised outing. The employer argued he had left the work-organised group and this was something he did in his own time.

Increasingly employers are looking for legal protection against such claims and one option is to call an end to work retreats and so on, and just organise get-togethers in the office or via teleconferencing where they have more control over any injury risks.

I agree an employer is responsible to ensure a staff member working out of town is accommodated in proper, safe accommodation.

If the boss puts you up in a dive where you are injured then they could be held liable.