Depends on the agreement you signed when hired. Then again, if you can show that the "something" was dated, ill used, well used, or not appropriate to it's use, then no. A bartender, hired under the agreement of, "You break it, you bought it" could only show cause, if the "shotglass" broken had been in srvice for many tears. In other words, the owner would have to show reciepts where shotglasses were bought on a regular basis, instead of using those in beginning inventory.