Employers Urged To Consider 'Calling Time' On Boozey Summer Lunches

July 2007

Two-Fifths Of Employees More Likely To Drink During Summer Lunch Breaks

London, England, July 9 2007 - Nearly two-fifths of workers are expected to spend their summer lunch breaks at the pub. And employers are being advised to be aware of the consequences by leading workplace expert Croner, part of Wolter Kluwers UK.

A recent survey, carried out for Croner by YouGov, asked employees whether they drank alcohol on work-day lunchtimes, and whether warmer weather would tempt them to do this more.

Twenty-one per cent of the 1,000 people surveyed said they sometimes had an alcoholic drink during their lunch break - and of these people, a staggering 39 per cent said they would be more likely to do so during the summer.

Croner is now advising employers to be aware of the potential Health and Safety consequences of this trend.

Under the general requirements of the Health and Safety at Work, etc Act 1974, employers are required to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all employees. In this vein, employers should ensure that people known to be misusing substances, including alcohol, do not adversely affect the safety of themselves and others whilst at work. Employers may also need to reiterate their company's policy on alcohol in the workplace

Stephen Thomas, safety technical consultant with Croner, says: "In the right circumstances, there's nothing wrong with having a sensible drink at lunchtime but employers need to make sure that doing so doesn't compromise an employee's ability to do their job and, most importantly, do it safely.

"It's accepted that alcohol can have a faster and greater affect when consumed in warm weather, and people could easily be fooled into thinking that they're fine after a lunchtime drink when the effects might end up being much more pronounced - even small amounts of alcohol can lead to increased reaction times, loss of concentration and risk-taking behaviour.

"Lunchtime drinking is obviously more serious for anyone operating machinery, driving or working in a hazardous environment than it is for a desk-bound office employee, and employers often impose a complete alcohol ban for workers who hold high risk posts.

"But ultimately everyone should be expected to adhere to set standards of workplace behaviour and demeanour at all times of the day.

"There's also the issue of an employer's liability for any accidents that a worker either causes or suffers after being allowed to go back to work when they shouldn't have been permitted to do so. Employers have a 'duty of care' at all times and they could be viewed as failing to carry this out if someone who is intoxicated and unfit to work is allowed to work, especially if they are in higher risk roles."

Stephen Thomas is advising companies to ensure that they have an alcohol policy in place which takes account of the risks associated with the work in question: "No-one wants to be unnecessarily seen as a killjoy, but in the case of high risk and safety-sensitive jobs, there should be no doubt that a no alcohol policy is the only option.

"As is often the case with this kind of situation, communicating effectively with employees and applying pragmatic solutions will provide the best end result for all parties and help to ensure the safety of employees and others."

SURVEY DETAILS

Croner and YouGov asked over 1,000 people how often they drank alcohol during their lunchbreak - of the 23 per cent that replied that they did drink alcohol at lunchtimes at least occasionally, 39 per cent said they would be more tempted to do so during a summer lunch break.

Wolters Kluwer UK is part of Wolters Kluwer Law & Business. Wolters Kluwer is a leading global information services and publishing company with annual revenues (2006) of €3.7 billion and approximately 19,900 employees worldwide. Visit www.wolterskluwer.com

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