Alcohol at work

I worked in many different environments, offices, schools, labs.
The only place we had alcohol at work was a brewery! Where everyone was entitled to ONE free pint per day.

No I worked in Local Government and for a big charity (not since 2000) and in neither place was alcohol allowed in work. AND we worked for the time allotted, which seems increasingly rare. The mobile phone also has altered people's expectations. When I started work, you had to ask (and we did) if you wanted to make a private call - eg doctor, dentist, haircut. Tell that to kids today!

Obviously you haven’t seen drinking in your job it’s normal for ppl in high power jobs. One of my mums bosses every time we went in always had booze in his office always offered it to ppl and other business ppl also had a bar room and everything. Most of us are everyday ppl not big wigs. Do you really think they have all these meetings with a cup of coffee and some crisps ?. No I don’t blame Boris. You can’t blame someone for the actions of others. They are all grown adults and no different between what is right and what is wrong. If someone in your house did something wrong would you say it’s your fault no it’s the person that done it. Why don’t you just be honest and say you not a Boris fan and looking for a reason to knock him down. And no I’m not his fan.

No, it would have been a disciplinary, I just go to the pub.

Worked in the Media many, many years ago where alcohol was drunk at any time, morning through to night. Have worked in teaching where it would mean instant dismissal. I think that many EU countries, where I have also worked for a short time, have it about right. People don't knock back alcohol (no red wine on the walls or vomit on the carpet), but a small glass of something at lunch with a meal wouldn't constitute dismissal. However, I'm sure it wouldn't be acceptable there either for those in the health service, operating machinery etc. Depends on the work involved.

I worked for a Government agency for many years and we were always told that if an employee is given alcohol at work then is injured, injuries someone, is involved in an accident or done for drink drinking in scope of employment or going home then the employer is liable.
Not 100% sure if this is correct but we did very occasionally get given a drink but health and safety people tried to restrict to one or two drinks. I always thought this was a responsible attitude

I worked in an architects office in the seventies. The men (all were architects) routinely went for lunch in the pub and had a couple of pints. The women, all office staff, wouldn't have dreamt of drinking at work.

If you don't live and work in London or another big city, chances are you'll be driving home so drinking wouldn't be appropriate. Surely hardly anyone working in central London would drive to and from work, so drinks at an after hours leaving do, when work is over for the day, wouldn't be much of a scandal! The scandal was the hypocrisy of it. However, drinking alcohol during working hours must affect people's ability to carry out their work. We'd be shocked if NHS workers, teachers, bus drivers etc. hit the pub at lunchtime or brought a suitcase of alcohol to work with their packed lunch. Only people employed to taste samples of wine and beer should be drinking during working hours! ? People often kid themselves that one drink won't affect their judgement but that's probably because the one drink has already impaired their judgement! (I like a nice glass of red but I'm retired!)

Worked in NHS and then social housing both had instant dismissal for drinking or being under the influence at work

When I was in the Civil Service (many years ago) we had Office Parties in the office with plenty of alcohol flowing. The first one I went to had a make shift bar and when I went to get my third whisky, they told me I had drunk it all and gave me a mug of Southern Comfort. Apparently, one of my colleagues had been quietly topping up my glass on the side whilst I was talking so I had drunk far more than I realised. I was in such a perilous state and as the youngest in the office, I now wonder how many of the staff knew what was happening.
Up until recent years, the Fire Service Headquarters has had a bar within its building. I think funding cuts and a different outlook to alcohol saw it shut down. It was a great place for a "do" and there was not the attitude to alcohol so often seen which is destructive.

Never. I worked in a school where drinking alcohol on site would have been a sackable offence. We were not even allowed to have bottles of alcohol as raffle prizes at fund raising events.

Before drink/driving became the norm, yes,
but since, NO or only at Christmas parties

certainly I am not happy, (to put it mildly) of Government meetings having alcohol

and why isn`t the other thing that Boris has done being debated or mentioned? ie. he has changed the rules to cover this farce! minor offences not to be bothered about, who decides what is a minor offence?

People's attirude to alcohol differs in many countries. The UK seems to have a 'drink as much as you can' view whilst others have a much more 'accepting and controlled' view. I have worked in places where alcohol was available to staff.. Never experienced any problems. Last place I was located had rule no alcohol allowed on premises. However it was available for Local Councillors in their restaurant and for entertaining in Committee Rooms, bit like H of P.

My career was in education and alcohol was definitely not allowed in schools even after hours. If we were saying goodbye to a colleague then we had nibbles in the staff room with juices and then sometimes moved on to a local pub for a meal and drinks. Drinking alcohol on education premises would definitely been a sackable offence and was accepted as perfectly right.

I worked at the head office of a well known motoring organisation in the 1980’s. The building had 3 bars. One on the top floor for visiting dignitaries, one for senior managers and where we could take customers and one for the rest of us. Long gone I’m sure. Prior to that I worked at an I.T. company. It was opposite a wine bar to which the entire building went to on a Friday lunchtime never to return. One Friday afternoon a company manager from a nearby town called in to find the entire building empty.

Never. I worked in the NHS for 30 and my husband worked as a Teacher for 38 years. Drinking at work and even coming back from lunch smelling of alcohol constituted ‘Gross Professional Misconduct’ and could result in instant dismissal. That remains the case across the public sector. Unless you are a self-entitled member of Politics ?

It was in my contract that if you had an alcholic drink at all it was instant dismissal.
And rightly so,as machines were being used.

I shall write to my MP and ask. He's SNP but he may know about the "culture" in the house of commons.
I am shocked but then I am easily shocked.
Only once I remember when I was working as a junior in a geriatric/psychiatric ward, at the end of a shift one of the nurses would whisper to come into the office and a bottle of sweet sherry was served in medicine cups!

I worked for a government department for many years. Alcohol was permitted at leaving,
retirement dos etc. They took full advantage.

No. Teaching and alcohol is a bad idea.
What worries me more is that I doubt if this was any different from the usual behaviour of government ministers outside lockdown. Alcohol in the HoC and the HoL seems to be acceptable.

I didn't drink alcohol at work. I would have been disciplined.

There is a difference between a glass or two in the office at the end of the day and excessive drinking till 4am during a pandemic when it was against the law.

In my many years of working - yes very occasionally and very small amounts.

We sometimes had wine which had been donated by reps as a christmas present and had a glass or 2 at a staff meeting
The staff meeting were always held after work so nobody was working after that

and when I worked in Aged Care there was a relative who brought in a bottle of bubbly every New Year to share with his wife and offered a glass to staff
Nobody had a problem with staff having 1 glass at midnight to bring in the New Year.

I haven’t come across drugs but lawyers and doctors are known to drink a lot so drugs wouldn’t surprise me. Not all lawyers or doctors obviously, but a good many.

We had a solicitor doing work for us who left the firm suddenly delaying everything, enquiring why, discretely we were told cocaine!. Given that traces of drugs have been identified in HoC alcohol is the least of our problems.

No, never in local authority. No never at meetings with our I-own legal team or with barristers, solicitors I’d instructed.