Bringing Solutions to the Problem
Binge Drinking and the Workplace

Alcohol has long been the #1 drug of abuse among American employees. The National Institute on Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse estimates that alcohol problems cost U.S. employers $27 billion in lost productivity alone. Growing awareness of this huge impact on the bottom line has motivated many businesses to address alcohol problems among workers. Until recently most of these efforts have been designed to help alcohol dependent workers initiate recovery and reclaim their productivity. But while an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is both a cost effective and humane response to a costly problem, such individually focused interventions do not typically address the lion's share of the losses caused by alcohol abuse.

"Research shows that the bulk of the costs to business don't come from alcoholics," says Chris O'Neill, manager of Workdrugfree, in Eugene,Oregon. "Instead, it's the occasional, heavy users who actually create 60 per cent of the problems."

O'Neill works with community prevention coalitions throughout Oregon to help them broaden their participation to include employers. Such coalitions have a clear motivation for working with employers. A national survey showed that 76 per cent of the people who have alcohol and other drug problems are employed. This convinced health authorities to direct more of the state's prevention resources into working with employers rather than continue to focus primarily on grade schools, high-risk youth and families.

Often the first step in recruiting a coalition participant from the business community is presenting a more complete picture of the negative impact of episodic drinking-not just alcoholism-on their own workforce. "We try to make it clear to employers that if they haven't addressed binge drinking, they haven't yet taken on their biggest problem," says O'Neill.

Once he has an employer's attention, O'Neill acknowledges that solutions to the "hangover effect" are complex. Drinking immediately before or during the workday can be prohibited. But alcohol is legal and employers can't tell workers not to drink on their own time. Workplace intervention efforts must focus instead on appropriate responses to the most common symptoms of binge drinking: absenteeism, tardiness, poor performance and attitude problems. And, because workplace culture and co-worker attitudes can influence drinking behaviors both at work and beyond the workplace, O'Neill advises employers to train supervisors and take every appropriate opportunity to establish moderate norms around drinking. Holiday parties and other events sponsored by the employer where alcohol is served are an excellent chance to model moderation and practice Responsible Beverage Service.