18 February, is "Drink Wine Day" so cheers!

Some interesting wine facts include:

• It takes two pounds of grapes to make a bottle of wine
• Red wine gets its colour from the grape skin
• White wine gains more colour with age
• Women make better wine tasters than men because they have a better sense of smell

Wine has been drunk for thousands of years and it is recommended that you drink wine on a moderate basis because it can actually be good for you helping reduce the risk of strokes and heart disease. However alcohol abuse can be bad particularly when its effects spill into the workplace.

An employer has a duty of care under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 with their employees and needs to be aware of possible alcohol (and drug) abuse in the workplace.  It is essential that a policy that covers the use of alcohol (and drugs) is developed and put into place.  An employer should protect workers and encourage anyone who is suffering from alcohol abuse to seek help.

Alcohol abuse can contribute to poor productivity as well as poor health.  Mistakes can be made and colleagues put at risk. It is important to recognise the signs – attendance issues, attitude and conduct, poor performance dress and hygiene issues.

A policy should ensure that problems are dealt with quickly and give guidance to employees on conducting themselves in relation to alcohol, how problems will be identified and under what circumstances an employee’s drinking will be referred to as a disciplinary rather than a health problem.  Managers should be educated in how to help staff who are mis-using alcohol.  Accurate written records should be kept of documented meetings that have discussed the issues.  Meeting should be confidential and held in a private manner.  The employee should be asked about the issues and invited to give an explanation.  If they mention a problem with alcohol then it might be a good idea to suggest an occupational health referral or provide access to an employee assistance programme.  An action plan needs to be agreed to address the matters with follow up meetings arranged in the diary.

Some employers implement drug and alcohol testing where employees are in control of machinery or drive as part of their job.  This is a good defence in case there is an accident. However employers need to think carefully about what they want the screening to do and what they will do with the information gained.