Are Employers Willing to Pay the Price for Office Gambling?

The hype and focus on March Madness made me think about the ethics involved in sports gambling with office pools. Certainly this is a relevant topic as many of us participate in office pools throughout the year for various sporting events – fantasy leagues, basketball brackets, Superbowl pools, etc. The legality of this form of gambling is questionable on a state to state basis as some states outlaw any form of gambling in the workplace even nominal wagers. Aside from the direct legal consequences and the threat of non-productivity involved with placing bets and strategizing brackets during work hours, an interesting ethical perspective was addressed in an article from USA Today.

“Are employers held accountable for worker’s addictions that develop from the participation of office gambling?” It is actually possible for an employee to get compensated if it can be proven that the individual suffered a financial loss due to the encouragement of office gambling. There are also other factors that can result in allowing sports gambling at the office; addictive gamblers are more likely to miss work and assignments, borrow money from co-workers, and there is also the possibility of company theft.

For the majority of workers, March Madness pools are an entertaining way for groups and small companies to encourage friendly competition and fun in the workplace. But what about the gamblers or recovering addicts who are surrounded by these office pools on a daily basis at work? For the small minority of workers who have gambling addictions that may worsen due to these office pools, are the employers directly responsible for monitoring this type of behavior at work?