The Miami Herald: College Basketball Interest Rises During March Madness. Ft. Lauderdale labor attorney, Paul Lopez of Tripp Scott Law Offices says employers have to be “very careful” not to officially endorse any activity that could be legally classified as gambling – doing so could create real liability risks, and might also make some employees feel pressured to participate, he said. 

But if workers act independently, and put together their pool during lunch breaks or on personal time, “there’s not much employers can do about it,” Lopez said. 

College basketball’s annual “Big Dance’’ – the weekslong national TV spotlight knows as March Madness — gets under way Tuesday, bringing with it that beloved scourge of workplace production, the office betting pool.

It’s typically a low-stakes affair, in which employees wager $5 or $10 for maybe a $250 payoff. Still, all those five-dollar bills add up to a big phenomenon – the FBI estimates more than $2.5 billion is illegally wagered on March Madness games every year.