What is the law if I was fired for bringing liquor to a private work event at the restaurant where I
was employed?
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What is the law if I was fired for bringing liquor to a private work event at the restaurant where I
was employed?
The restaurant is licensed to sell beer and wine only. No one was clocked in and the restaurant was closed to the public. The alcohol was not sold and it was distributed by other employees, not by a catering company or the restaurant itself. Did I break a law? Also, I filed for unemployment and the topic of the legalities of the liquor licensing was not discussed between me and the EDD representative and it was mutually agreed on behalf of my employer to not bring it up either when questioned. I was instead denied unemployment because I broke a ‘reasonable rule’, the only rule I was able to find in the policy being
Asked on January 29, 2018 under Employment Labor Law, California
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 6 years ago | Contributor
No, you do not have a case, unfortunately.
1) The restaurant is still your workplace, even if then closed to the public; your "office" does not cease to be your office after hours.
2) An employer is under no obligaton to be fair or evenhanded; they can enforce the rules against some employees but not others. If you did break a rule--which you evidently did--you may be terminated for cause even if others also broke the rule.
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