Help Staff Fight Drink And Drug Misuse, Firm’s Urged

Four out of 10 employers say that alcohol misuse is a significant cause of worker absenteeism, but few organisations have policies to deal with drink or drug problems, according to a report published today.

In a survey of 500 organisations by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, 40% of employers questioned said alcohol misuse was a “significant cause” of employee absence and lost productivity.

One third of the organisations reported that drug abuse had a similarly negative impact in the workplace.

But only a half of the employers provided access to counselling or to occupational health services for staff members with substance-dependency problems.

The author of the report, Ben Willmott, said employers should be doing more to help their workers fight alcohol and drug problems. “Supporting employees with drug and alcohol problems has a high success rate, with many individuals returning to work. But organisations must make employees aware of the policies and support in place otherwise they will not have the confidence to hold their hand up and acknowledge they have a problem and need help,” he said.

According to the survey, only 38% of employers provide coordinated rehabilitation support to help individuals with drug or alcohol problems return to work after treatment. Only a third of employers train their managers in recognising and managing drugs and alcohol misuse, Mr Willmott said. Where organisations do have policies in place they do very little to promote them, he added. “Simply adding a policy to a rarely-used staff handbook is unlikely to ensure the issue is seen as an ongoing priority.”

Almost a third of organisations surveyed said they had dismissed employees in the last two years because of alcohol problems. Fifteen percent of the organisations reported dismissals in which drug misuse was a cause or major factor. “Clearly drug and alcohol misuse is an issue which needs to be taken seriously within the workplace,” said Mr Wilmott.

Twenty-two per cent of organisations surveyed test their workers for alcohol or drugs misuse, the survey showed.

According to the Health and Safety Executive, up to 14m working days are lost each year due to alcohol-related problems, at an estimated cost to British industry of around £2bn each year. Clare McNeil of Addaction, the drug and alcohol treatment charity, said that the survey reflected a society which turned a blind eye to the risks of excessive drink and drug use. “Many people with a drug or alcohol dependency can and do manage to hold down a job, but they may not realise the extent of their problems and can be reluctant to seek help,” she said. “Responsible employers must be able to identify and manage problems early on, but they can only do this if drug and alcohol rehabilitation programmes are available locally.”