Trade fears blanket ban on lunchtime drinking
Nearly three quarters of British firms would like to see a blanket ban on lunchtime drinking - a move that would have a devastating effect on the pub trade.
A report carried out by trade magazine Personnel Today, in association with charities Alcohol Concern and DrugScope, found that 74 per cent of the 300 human resource managers questioned would like to prevent employees from drinking at all during their lunch hour.
Experts say the measures are being considered because accidents, abseentism and poor performance caused by alcohol and drug abuse are on the increase.
This is estimated to be costing British Industry as much as £2.8bn a year.
But it is feared an enforced ban on lunchtime drinking could drive people out of pubs and into the new breed of cafes and coffee bars that have already proved stiff competition for many licensees.
Mark Hastings, spokesman for the Brewers and Licensed Retailers Association, attacked the report's findings and said that excessive lunchtime drinking was already very much "a thing of the past".
He said that workers these days were much more likely to order a bottle of mineral water or drink a single glass of wine or other alcoholic drink with a meal.
Mr Hastings suggested that moderation was the key, and added that a "heavy-handed blanket ban approach wouldn't do any good".
But the report also found that:
- three out of four companies said alcohol abuse by workers had led them to miss time at work
- three out of 10 companies say workers have missed work because of drug problems
- three in every 10 companies were considering introducing tests during the next year.
Just last month the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry urged businesses to randomly test their staff for the effects of alcohol and drugs (See Plans for drink and drugs tests criticised (9 July 2001)for full details).
