Work-related risk factors associated with alcohol abuse

Alcohol Health & Research World,  Spring, 1992  by Harrison M. Trice

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Union-Management Conflict

If labor unions are present within a company, management may be unwilling to cooperate with them to develop a joint intervention policy. Research indicates that the impetus to initiate and implement joint programs probably lies more with unions than with management (Johnson 1980). One study of two large unions demonstrated clearly that the initiation of cooperation lay largely among lower level officers of these unions (Trice and Beyer 1982). In addition, where local union officials perceived the alcohol problem to be relatively major, these officers were apt to try to take action on their own rather than to join with management. Within such contexts, intervention efforts are crippled, and risks for alcohol abuse are heightened.

EXTERNAL RISK FACTORS

Compared with the amount of available data regarding internal work-related risk factors, consideration of external risk factors is, for the most part, a relatively fresh arena (Fillmore 1991). This section briefly presents examples of external risk factors to demonstrate how they may aggravate and intensify internal risks.

Socioeconomic Risks

Although drinking--sometimes rather regularly and heavily--is more prevalent among those of higher social status, drinking problems are more prevalent among the poor than among the affluent (Cahalan 1987). Therefore, employers who hire a large segment of their work force from the lower socioeconomic classes may import a disproportionately large number of alcohol abusers into their organizations.

Alcohol Availability

Low prices of alcoholic beverages, numerous sales outlets, extensive sales hours, and low drinking age have all been associated with higher rates of problem drinking within a community. Since work organizations are apt to draw their labor forces locally, high availability of alcoholic beverages within a community creates a significant risk that alcohol abuse among employees will also be high.

Heavy-Drinking Occupational Subcultures

Many occupations form distinct subcultures within their workplaces. In many cases, these subcultures view drinking as a way to show conformity to group standards (Mars 1987). Ethnographic studies have documented that miners, longshoremen, railroad engineers, construction workers, and maritime seamen encourage the abuse of alcohol by occupational members. One study demonstrated that journalists, authors, and related workers had elevated mortality ratios for cirrhosis of the liver, suggesting the presence of significantly greater amounts of alcohol abuse among them (Fillmore and Caetano 1982).

"Environmental Jolts"

Meyer (1982) defined an "environmental jolt" as an abrupt, unpleasant intrusion from an organization's environment that dramatically disrupts the ability of the workplace to function. Examples of environmental jolts abound: In 1982, the Johnson & Johnson company suddenly faced the unthinkable--someone had put cyanide into bottles of Tylenol, the company's best selling product. Similarly, widespread rumors that Gerber baby food contained broken glass caused sales to plunge. And in 1977, McDonald's management was stunned by powerful rumors that its president was making contributions to the Church of Satan.