Every year, in the U.S. alone, approximately 232 million alcohol-related absences are reported. Translate that figure to reflect the total cost of these workdays, and it will easily surpass $100 billion in the same year. What’s more, around 70% of the total cost will be due to lost wages as a result of reduced productivity at work.
How, then, can employers try to resolve this issue? One of the most effective solutions would be to provide alcohol awareness training to employees. Here’s why that matters:
1. It Promotes Productivity
Most people believe that alcohol awareness training programs are meant for restaurants and/or bar staff members who handle or serve alcohol. While alcohol awareness training is crucial, even mandatory, to restaurant and bar staff, it’s not them alone who can benefit. Employees in other businesses as well as their managers and employers can also benefit when they understand the impact of alcohol on performance in workplaces.
A well-structured Alcohol Awareness Training course by a top-rated provider like RocketCert will include everything your employees and other stakeholders in your business should know about alcohol and its impact. One of the major benefits of such awareness is reduced absenteeism and presenteeism (employees coming to work but underperforming due to ill health). Lower absenteeism and presenteeism will often result in stable or increased productivity.
2. Reduced Mental Health Problems
Several people, even in workplaces, drink to reduce stress, not knowing they are digging an even deeper hole that will require more effort and resources to get out of. Even though alcohol can provide a temporary solution and lift one’s mood, it often brings about a range of negative effects from depression and memory loss to untimely dismissal from work and suicide.
By providing access to alcohol awareness training, your employees will understand how alcohol can ruin both their personal and workplace lives. As you do so, consider offering comprehensive wellbeing programs that include counselling. Employees can use these as alternative solutions to any issues they may have.
3. Employees Will Make Healthier Lifestyle Choices
The CDC has guidelines that are meant to help anyone who has met the legal drinking age to control their alcohol intake. For women, it’s no more than 1 drink each day and 7 drinks every week, and for men, a maximum of 2 drinks a day and 14 per week. The problem here is that very few people have information about these guidelines, which means it’s likely most of your employees are unaware of how much they drink.
When you provide this information through awareness training programs, it’s easier for your employees to make informed decisions regarding their drinking.
4. There’ll be Fewer Alcohol-Related Accidents
Did you know that up to 11-65% of workplace accidents involve alcohol? That’s quite a lot, considering that each of these incidents will affect your company in some way. Therefore, it makes a lot of sense if you can invest in an alcohol awareness training program to sensitize everyone in your workplace. That way, you can expect fewer alcohol-related accidents or events.
5. You’ll See Lower Staff Turnover
Another major reason to offer your employees access to alcohol awareness training is to give them the chance to assess their drinking levels. You should offer support as part of this program so that anyone who feels like they are drinking too much can seek assistance.
That way, any employee who’s drinking at harmful levels will be able to cut down or stop altogether, hence reducing the likelihood of disciplinary action. This not only benefits such employees but your company as well, considering just how much it costs employers to replace a single employee.
Alcohol Awareness Training Made Easy!
Now that you know why it’s important to offer alcohol awareness training in your company, it’s time to get into action. You should prioritise getting your program from a reliable provider since that’s the only way to reap tangible benefits from your investment.
RocketCert offers expertly prepared courses that are also fully narrated and fun to take. That increases the chances of uptake so everyone in your organisation can benefit. Ready to build a sober workforce? Visit rocketcert.com today to get started.
