The impact of alcohol consumption on employees’ productivity is undeniable, with up to 17 million working days lost each year just because of alcohol-related sickness and the cost to employers of sick days due to drink estimated at £1.7bn. We believe that a healthy workforce is a win-win for all concerned, but our research suggests there is more work to be done on both sides. Employers hold a responsibility at a grass roots level to encourage health and wellbeing in the work place. Tackling this issue in and out of the workplace is notoriously difficult, but it’s vital that employers try to provide guidance to encourage staff to make appropriate choices.
One way to tackle the problem is for employers to monitor patterns in absence in order to identify those potentially at risk, and provide them the necessary support. ”
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Britain’s Healthiest Company research reveals over half of the UK’s workforce (57%) regularly exceed the NHS recommended drinking allowance[1] by drinking more than six units in one session,
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29% of participating employees reported this to be a weekly occurrence.
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Conversely, nearly four out of five employees (79%) responded they are happy with the amount that they drink. Even though such a high number of employees surveyed exceed healthy drinking levels, only 21% feel they drink too much and just 2% are motivated to reduce their alcohol consumption.
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The impact of alcohol consumption on employees’ productivity is significant, with up to 17 million working days lost each year because of alcohol-related sickness and the cost to employers of sick days due to drink estimated at £1.7bn.
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In spite of this, only half the employers surveyed (50%) provide alcohol awareness and support facilities such as counselling, although 80% of these companies feel that these programmes improve employees’ wellness.
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Similarly, information and options for seeking help for drinking problems is provided by 51% of companies, with 39% of these companies stating that this has a positive impact on employees’ wellness.
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