OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska Supreme Court has reversed a workers' compensation court ruling favoring an employee hurt during a company party.
The case stems from a 2010 cookout Aurora Cooperative, which owns grain elevators in southeast Nebraska, held for its customers in Ong. A co-op employee, John Jacobitz, was injured in a fall from the back of a pickup during the cookout while helping move a grill to a company shed.
The workers' compensation court based its finding for Jacobitz on the fact that "the co-op received a substantial benefit from Jacobitz's attendance." But the Nebraska Supreme Court said Friday that the standard for whether an employee is entitled to benefits when injured at a social event tied to employment is "a substantial direct benefit," not merely a "substantial benefit."
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