Perceived physical availability of alcohol at work and workplace alcohol use and impairment: Testing a structural model.

Abstract

This study develops and tests a new conceptual model of perceived physical availability of alcohol at work that provides unique insight into three dimensions of workplace physical availability of alcohol and their direct and indirect relations to workplace alcohol use and impairment. Data were obtained from a national probability sample of 2,727 U.S. workers. The results support the proposed conceptual model and provide empirical support for a positive relation of perceived physical availability of alcohol at work to workplace alcohol use and two dimensions of workplace impairment (workplace intoxication and workplace hangover). Ultimately, the findings suggest that perceived physical availability of alcohol at work is a risk factor for alcohol use and impairment during the workday, and that this relation is more complex than previously hypothesized.

Differential effects of employment grade on the association between long working hours and problem drinking

“…Contextual factors embedded in work environments may contribute to the inconsistency across the reviewed studies, because broad employment categories were often used or only selected occupations were included. Alcohol drinking aggregates in certain occupations through multiple pathways, such as socializing, the share of alcohol availability, and the level of alcohol management . Furthermore, criticism has been that the overpresentation of socioeconomically‐privileged workers in the long working hour group may cause bias, because long working hours may not necessarily be a stress to these workers and subsequently lead to drinking.…”

Six Shades of Grey: Identifying Drinking Culture and Potentially Risky Drinking Behaviour in the Grey Zone between Work and Leisure. the Wirus Culture Study

“…Furthermore, we find support for our results by adapting Frone and Trinidad’s model of the perceived physical availability of alcohol at work to our potential risk areas between work and leisure. 5 Inspired by Ames & Grube 34 and Ames & Janes, 35 Frone and Trinidad developed a structural model of perceived physical availability at work and workplaces, and find three risk factors for alcohol use and impairment during the working day. These dimensions are : (a) alcohol can be easily brought into work, b) alcohol can be easily used during the workday, and c) alcohol can be easily obtained at work.…”

“…Most previous studies of work and alcohol have focused on drinking at work, 5-7 problem drinking, 8 risk factors, 9 sick leave 10,11 and presentism, 12 while a very few studies have to some extent investigated the grey zone between work and leisure. 2,13,14…”

Abuse of Licit and Illicit Psychoactive Substances in the Workplace: Medical, Toxicological, and Forensic Aspects

“…Staying in the workplace under the influence of psychoactive substances depends on the combination of multiple factors, some linked to individual characteristics and lifestyles, and others of professional nature, such as work typology, rhythms and cadences, irregular working hours as occurs in shift work, stress, and psychological harassment, among others. The following are some of the consequences of the occupational psychoactive substance consumption and thus justify why employers aim for a "drug-free" workplace [72][73][74]: (i) increase in the rate of presenteeism (i.e., being present at workplace in an impaired state) and absenteeism that affects professional performance promoting errors, and hence the competitiveness and productivity of the enterprise, as well as the country's own wealth; (ii) creation of a negative image, leading to discrediting and despising of the organization; (iii) negative effect on the equipment integrity and therefore a potential cause of financial losses; (iv) negative effect on the workers' physical, psychosocial, and behavioral integrity; (v) risk of neglect and reduced decision-making and motor coordination, consequently leading to a higher number of errors and accidents and therefore costs (e.g., insurance premiums); (vi) workers being more often involved in conflict, violent behavior, and theft, and being more frequently the subject of complaint by coworkers who may also see their physical integrity or even their own lives affected as a result of lack of care or discernment, decreased alertness, or altered perceptions or judgements from others being under the influence of psychoactive substances; and (vii) workers tending to be non-punctual (arriving at work later and leaving early) than the rest of the working population, putting a greater strain on coworkers by introducing additional tasks that still need to be done.…”