Firms call last orders on drinking during work

Employers are considering a clampdown on drinking and drug abusing workers and plan to introduce random testing, according to a new report. The survey, carried out for Alcohol Concern, Drugscope and Personnel today, claims that a third of organisations are hoping to introduce testing next year.

It is thought that 14m working days are lost each year through alcohol-related problems, costing British Industry £2.8bn.

Nearly three quarters of firms questioned (74%) said they would like to ban drinking at lunchtime, and 10% would discipline staff for drunken behaviour that occurred outside office hours. However, the report also found that nearly a quarter of firms have no policy for dealing with drink or drug problems.

Roger Howard, chief executive of Drugscope urged managers to be cautious of introducing drink and drug tests: "Drug testing should only be brought in after full consultation with staff and within the context of a clear and humane policy on what to do with positive results".
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