Personal Responsibility, Abandonment of Employment and the Intoxicated Worker
Washington State adheres to the axiom that its workers’ compensation system provides coverage to a worker injured in the course of employments without consideration of fault. On occasion the “no-fault” system seems to trivialize personal responsibility. The recent decision of the Washington State Court of Appeals, however, is a refreshing reminder that claimants of benefits under the Industrial Insurance Act do have at least a modicum of responsibility for their own personal well-being.