One in three UK workers have called in sick after drinking at a work event or after hours with colleagues, research has found.
Many staff feel under pressure to drink in work-related settings against their wishes, despite a big shift among younger adults away from consuming as much alcohol as their predecessors.
The findings are contained in a report by the IPPR thinktank. It found that many employers are out of step with the generational change in attitude towards drinking because they still hold work social events in bars or pubs or make alcohol a central feature of the occasion.
The report highlights how in contrast the restaurant chain Wagamama has replaced alcohol-centred staff socials with explicitly non-alcoholic events such as pottery workshops, yoga classes, running clubs and boxing sessions, which have improved morale and cohesion.
The IPPR’s findings are partly based on a representative survey of 2,083 working-age UK adults by the pollsters Public First. “Even as drinking habits shift, cultural pressures in the workplace continue to drive harm,” the thinktank said.
The survey found:
32% of workers had called in sick the next day after drinking at a work event or with workmates in the last year.
41% of 18- to 24-year-olds had been too hungover to work, and 47% of 25- to 34-year-olds.
22% of staff in education and 24% in health and social care had cried off work the next day after drinking at or after work in the past six months, and a fifth in both sectors had turned up late the next day.
28% think drinking at work events excludes non-drinkers or creates cliques.
The IPPR, which is influential with the Labour government, said workplace drinking “is not just a hangover, it’s a productivity crisis”, with alcohol harm now “a national economic problem”.
Sebastian Rees, the thinktank’s head of health, said: “On one hand, gen Z are drinking less than previous generations, and some employers are taking welcome steps to move away from alcohol-centred work events. Yet the UK’s professional culture remains deeply rooted in drinking. A pint after work, a glass of wine at a networking event or a social at the pub still sit at the heart of many careers.”
The IPPR urged ministers to bring in minimum unit pricing for alcohol in England, which evidence suggests is reducing alcohol-linked deaths in Scotland, and to tell employers to do more on workplace drinking.
Dr Richard Piper, the chief executive of Alcohol Change UK, which funded the report, said it countered “endless alcohol industry overclaim about the economic benefits it delivers”.
Alcohol “hampers the daily functioning and performance of our workplaces and overall strength of our economy”, he said. “When alcohol dominates workplace cultures, productivity and wellbeing both take a hit while making life much harder for those of us who don’t drink alcohol or want to drink less.”
The Confederation of British Industry said employers must ensure staff do not feel under pressure to drink at work events. “Having clear policies is an important starting point [to making events inclusive] and a growing number of employers have policies specifically about alcohol,” said Matthew Percival, the CBI’s future of work and skills director. “There are many reasons why individuals may not wish to consume alcohol at work events, and nobody should ever feel pressured to do so.”
The government declined to respond directly to the IPPR’s report. A spokesperson said: “As part of our 10-year health plan, we are supporting people to make healthier choices through our shift from sickness to prevention as we build an NHS fit for the future. This includes committing to introducing a mandatory requirement for alcoholic drinks to display consistent nutritional information and health warning messages.
“The government has also provided an additional £310m to improve drug and alcohol treatment services and wider recovery support.”
It continues to review moves to reduce alcohol-related harm, such as changes to alcohol duty and the possible introduction of minimum unit pricing.
