By Aspen Pflughoeft, The Charlotte Observer (TNS)
An employee who suffered a serious brain injury after an alcohol-filled work event is suing his employer, according to U.K. court documents.
Michael Brockie, a 28-year-old from Reading, U.K., is suing international auditing firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), for more than $235,000 in damages, The Guardian reported, citing court documents.
Brockie attended a “pub golf” event at PwC’s Reading office in 2019, Bloomberg reported. According to court documents, the event involved nine bars, or “holes,” where employees would consume alcoholic beverages as quickly as possible, the outlet reported.
The lawsuit says the event “encouraged excessive consumption of alcohol,” and attendance involved “very heavy pressure” from management, Fortune reported, citing court documents.
Brockie became so intoxicated that he had no memory of the outing after 10 p.m., The Guardian reported. He blacked out and was found lying in the street with a severe head injury, likely from falling over, the outlet reported.
He was put into a medically induced coma and underwent surgery to remove half his skull, ITV reported in 2020.
“Doctors and the police came to the conclusion that I fell over and didn’t use my hands to break the fall so I ended up hitting my head on the floor,” Brockie told ITV. “The next thing I remember was four weeks later.”
Doctors told ITV that Brockie was “a walking miracle.”
He returned to work for PwC about seven months later, Fortune reported. According to court documents, he continues to suffer from “persistent cognitive symptoms” and remains at risk of developing epilepsy due to the injury, the outlet reported.
PwC said it does not comment on “ongoing legal proceedings” in a statement to McClatchy News.
“As a responsible employer we are committed to providing a safe, healthy and inclusive culture for all of our people,” the company said. “We also expect anyone attending social events to be responsible and to ensure their own safety and that of others.”
Brockie’s lawyer declined to comment when contacted by Fortune, Bloomberg and The Guardian.
Reading is about 40 miles west of London.
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©2022 The Charlotte Observer. Visit charlotteobserver.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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