Posted in Uncategorized
You should carefully screen job applicants and supervise their performance for many reasons. One is that your company could be sued because of the employee’s negligence on the job. Though this exposure should be covered through your liability insurance, if this becomes a problem, your premiums will increase, or your carrier may drop your coverage. Depending on the situation, you may also be liable for criminal acts by your employee as a business partnership lawyer can explain.
Why Is My Company On The Hook For My Employee’s Performance?
Vicarious, or imputed, liability occurs when an employer is responsible for the conduct of their agent or employee based on the parties’ relationship. It’s a type of strict liability because the employer controls the agent, and they represent the employer.
As our friends at Focus Law LA can share, examples of these situations include employer liability for the following:
- A supervisor who sexually harasses an employee
- An employee negligently repairs a vehicle, causing an accident that injures the customer
- An employee improperly installs a handrail, which collapses when someone uses it, causing injuries when the person falls down a flight of steps
Under the law of agency, an employer must defend negligence claims against an employee who performed their duties (even negligently) while on the job.
Depending on the facts, a possible defense could be that the employee was not doing something within the scope of their job when the act or omission occurred. You may not be liable for an accident caused by your delivery driver who deviated from an assigned route to buy illegal drugs.
What Is Negligent Hiring And Supervision?
An injured plaintiff may argue you’re responsible for an employee’s non-work activities that caused harm. Potentially, depending on the type of job, you may be responsible for a crime (something clearly outside the scope of a job) committed by an employee. One employer was successfully sued in a state court in 2022 by family members of a customer an employee robbed and murdered on his own time, according to Bloomberg Law.
Charter Communications employed Roy Holden as a cable technician. He went on a service call to Betty Thomas’ home as part of his job. The following day, while off duty but driving a company van, he returned and robbed and killed Thomas. Her survivors claimed Charter’s negligent hiring and supervision of Holden led to her death. The jury agreed.
Charter failed to verify Holden’s prior employment history when it hired him. The company relied on self-reported information instead of a formal employment check, which is the industry standard practice given that type of job and customer exposure. The company did a criminal background check and found nothing.
If Charter checked Holden’s job history, they would’ve found Holden:
- Was fired from previous jobs for misconduct, including unprofessional conduct, forgery, and disregarding supervisor instructions
- Omitted some jobs from his application
By failing to do adequate due diligence, Charter exposed itself to massive liability. There was also evidence the company ignored danger signs before Thomas’ death. Holden did the following:
- Begged his supervisor for money nine days before the murder. The supervisor refused but didn’t report it
- Broke down at work eight days before the murder because his wife left him
- Misused a company van, and Charter failed to discover it or stop that misuse a few days before the murder
The plaintiffs argued due to their negligence Holden was hired, not fired because of his conduct, and put in a position to harm Thomas. They showed evidence that Charter should have recognized Holden as a possible threat due to these red flags, as shown by its policies and industry standards.
Contact your attorney to discuss the issues of vicarious liability, negligent hiring, and supervision. You can review how to limit your potential exposure as much as possible and how to respond to such claims.
