Barbara Reese attended a training seminar organized by her employer. A motivational speaker was hired to conduct the session.

During the event, the speaker invited employees to karate chop wooden boards. He chose Reese, who failed to break the board with her bare hands. Apparently to demonstrate the power of persistence, he told her to try again.

The wood remained intact, so the speaker asked her for another try, which she refused to do. He then led the group of 300 or so co-workers in a chant of Reese’s name until she gave in and hit the board again.

The board didn’t break the third time either, but the attempt resulted in severe injuries and permanent nerve damage to Reese’s hand.

Reese sued, after the speaker’s insurance company refused to cover her medical expenses. The court sided with the insurance carrier because of fine print in the insurance plan.

No legal action was taken against her employer — but the event didn’t do the company a lot of good.

It’s a good idea for HR to know about what managers and outside speakers have planned for motivational events, so you can stop stupid ideas from being implemented.

Cite: Reese v. Alea London Limited

An anesthesiologist was fired after he was caught using narcotics at work. But when he tried to get another job two months later, his old boss told the new employer he was “an excellent clinician” and “would be an asset to any anesthesia service.”

After he was hired by the new company, he came to work high and almost killed a patient. The patient sued and won $8 million. So that company sued the man’s old employer — and won.

Reference check liability

A lot of companies choose not to give references at all, and just confirm employment dates and titles. If that’s what the supervisor in this case had done, the company might’ve been in the clear.

But the court made a distinction between not giving a reference and knowingly giving a false reference. As the judge said, once the supervisor volunteered to give any information about the employee’s performance, he was obligated to tell the whole truth.

Cite: Kadlec Medical Center v. Lakeview Anesthesia Associates