Every year around this time, I usually see at least half a dozen articles from various law firms reminding their clients that office gambling is illegal and advising businesses to prohibit their employees from participating in March Madness brackets and other office gambling on college basketball that runs rampant throughout March.

But what I also see around this time is – despite the admonitions from their counsel – most employers turning a blind eye to the office bets going on and even participation from those ranked highest in the company.

So what is a business to do?   Police all of its employees and prohibit the friendly office wager between co-workers over whether Wisconsin will beat Minnesota tonight?

First things first – in Wisconsin, office bets and other forms of social gambling (including March Madness brackets) are indeed illegal, which could (theoretically) result in a misdemeanor citation, if caught and prosecuted.

Wisconsin is not alone.  Here’s quick rundown of where states stand on office gambling:

STATES THAT DO NOT ALLOW OFFICE (SOCIAL) GAMBLING:

Alaska, Arkansas, California, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada (social gambling is prohibited; only licensed gambling is allowed), New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin.

STATES THAT ALLOW OFFICE (SOCIAL) GAMBLING:

Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Iowa (with limitations), Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota (with limitations), Ohio, Wyoming.

AND, THE “MAYBE” STATES:

Alabama, Pennsylvania, Texas.

At least in the states banning social gambling, employers are well-within their rights to simply issue a blanket prohibition on all forms of social gambling among its employees and to discipline employees who ignore the mandate.

But – if you just can’t stomach ruining March Madness for your employees, allow me to suggest a different approach, by providing you some parameters to minimize the company’s risk:

1. Tell your employees not to spend working time gambling.  They can discuss which teams are still on the bubble over lunch or during their breaks.
2. Don’t fire the employee who complains to you about the gambling.  While there’s little risk an employer is going to face liability for turning a blind eye to an occasional bracket or office pool, the risk changes substantially if that same employer decides to retaliate against the lone employee who refuses to participate and raises concerns about the appropriateness of office bets.
3. Decide whether employees can stream the games at work and stick with it.   This tip is important for two reasons:  one, the productivity of your employees slows down dramatically with every game they are streaming on their computers; and two, so does your network (which in turn impacts other employees’ productivity)
4. If you’ve got an employee with a known gambling addiction, think twice before you turn your office conference room into a sports book.  Yes, the Americans with Disabilities Act specifically excempts out gambling addiction as a covered disability, but it does not exempt depression or other mental illness.  That means your gambling addict employee may have a claim against the company if you fail to accommodate his disability by exacerbating his impairment with illegal bets in the office.
5. Expect and prepare for one or two employees to have a falling out.  Regardless of what type of office bets are offered and played, chances are at least a couple of employees will get bent out of shape for losing their hard-earned cash to a coworker.  Don’t be surprised when it happens and plan to address it in a professional manner.
6. The company is not the house.   The business should not be taking a “cut” of any gambling – it’s okay to take some money from the kitty to buy the pizza and drinks for the big Calcutta, but that’s it.  None of the money should be siphoned out to, for example, fund an employee outing that spring.  Doing so turns the company from a passive observer to an active participant in a gambling venture – something no business needs or wants.

Questions, comments, feedback?  Tips for me on completing my bracket?  Feel fee to send me an email at [email protected] and have a great March!  #marchmadness, #truefan, #gobadgers