In 2019, PwCer Michael Brockie (UK) was at an after-hours pub golf outing with colleagues when he got blackout drunk and awoke in the street later that night with no memory of the evening. He suffered a life-changing head injury and had to have part of his skull removed, most likely due to a fall he doesn’t remember. Here he is before:
And here he is after:
A man from #Reading has been described by doctors as ‘a walking miracle’ after recovering from an horrific head injury.
Mike Brockie had to have half of his skull removed after he fell and hit his head eight months ago.
More: https://t.co/9J4nOPbzed@OxHospCharity @OUHospitals pic.twitter.com/Ngn55fGvot
— ITV News Meridian (@itvmeridian) January 6, 2020
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“I’d been on a social with some friends,” he told ITV in 2020. “I left just before 1am on Friday morning and 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. The next thing I remember was four weeks later.”
Brockie — who still works for PwC UK as a manager — is now suing the firm. Via The Guardian:
The employee, 28-year-old Michael Brockie, filed a personal injury claim against PwC for alleged negligence, having suffered a brain injury and been put into an induced coma in early 2019. He is still experiencing “persistent cognitive symptoms”, according to the claim.
The lawsuit describes how staff at PwC’s Reading office were encouraged to attend the after-hours “pub golf” outing, which involved visiting nine bars, or “holes”, in which they were allegedly pushed to consume a specific alcoholic drink. Workers who used the fewest swigs to consume their drink were given the best scores, which were recorded on cards that were printed and distributed in the office, it is claimed.
Brockie returned to work full-time seven months after the incident. Said PwC in a statement: “We are unable to comment on the specifics of a matter that is subject to ongoing legal proceedings,” PwC said in a statement. “As a responsible employer we are committed to providing a safe, healthy and inclusive culture for all of our people. We also expect anyone attending social events to be responsible and to ensure their own safety and that of others.”
Court documents state the original invite from one of PwC’s managers said: “I expect absolute attendance from all of those who attended last year’s invitational. Nothing short of a certified and countersigned letter by an accredited medical practitioner will suffice as excuse.” The lawsuit also states there was “very heavy pressure” from management to attend the event that “encouraged excessive consumption of alcohol.”
He is suing PwC for damages of at least £200,000 ($235,104).
