How to . . . Enforce a no-drinking policy

PREVENTING boozing at work to ensure compliance with health and safety regulations is not something that should be taken seriously only in the festive season.

Rhys Evans, director of ALCO-Safe, which supplies breath alcohol testers, said: “The reality is that South Africa has a drinking culture, and alcohol abuse is a problem throughout the year.”

He has the following advice on how to apply a policy to prevent drunkenness at work:

Selective alcohol testing at certain times of the year will not create a culture of responsibility. It is also likely to make employees resentful, and add stress to the managers who are supposed to enforce it;

The best way to maintain compliance is to ensure regular, random testing. The development of effective policies and procedures and, vitally, their enforcement, is the way to ensure this is done;

Make sure everyone in the organisation is aware of the policies and procedures and understands that they are a way to keep all employees safe;

Combine the campaign to publicise the policies and procedures with an education drive, so that employees are aware of the potential harmful effects of alcohol on their health, workplace safety and, in the case of drivers, other road users;

Use good-quality alcohol-testing equipment to support the policies and procedures, and to ensure the readings are trusted; and

If the programme is applied consistently throughout the year, it will be easier to maintain compliance at times when employees are more likely to push boundaries. — Margaret Harris