Brief introduction
[tag-tec]Alcohol[/tag-tec] and substance abuse is a very common work related problem that human resource managers have had to encounter and solve. Reliable surveys reveals that at least fifty percent of alcoholics are women, twenty five percent of them being white collar workers , forty five percent being in senior management positions while thirty seven percent happens to be fresh graduates after receiving their first paycheck.
When effects of [tag-tec]alcohol and substance abuse [/tag-tec]on workers and work are severe, both the quantity and the quality of work decline radically. At times, the personnel managers may not know in advance of such cases and therefore the co-workers are the ones who get afflicted by the conducts of an alcoholic. It is not all HR personnel who fairly deal with alcoholics, some just dismiss them without helping them overcome their addiction, and perhaps paying them no benefits claiming that their irresponsibility destroyed the company’s profitability.
As a human resource officer or personnel, it is your duty to manage the company employees as though they were a valued asset, and healthy issues should be a primary concern.
Observable behavior patterns of workers who are alcoholics and substance abusers.
This has four main stages which includes the following:
Early stage
During this stage, the following specific signs can be used to determine if someone is abusing [tag-tec]alcohol[/tag-tec] and other substances like hard drugs.
These are:
- Tardiness- this means that they will come to work late or will be sluggish while performing their duties.
- Quit early from job without giving a damn if they have met their work deadlines or not.
- Absence from the job They will have a drink to relieve tension during the work breaks.
The general behaviors that one should observe at this stage are:
- Complains from fellow workers- if you are an immediate supervisor of that line of management where someone is thought to be linked to [tag-tec]alcoholic[/tag-tec] and substance abuse, you must not underrate the co-workers complains.
- Overreaction- if you as a HR personnel or supervisor, take a step to ask them about his behaviors that end up affecting the co-workers. Complains of sickness often, so he can be excused to go and drink. Make false statements especially if asked how far he has gone with a particular project.
Job performance during the early stages comprises of:
- The person feared to be abusing [tag-tec]alcohol[/tag-tec] or other substances misses the deadlines set for the task he is accountable for.
- His work is not effective because it has lots of errors and end up being repeated by another person.
- He has low efficiency when performing the assigned tasks.
Middle stage
During this stage, the following specific signs can be used to determine cases of [tag-tec]alcohol[tag-tec] and substance abuse.
These include:
- They become undependable in the sense they can not be trusted when they say they will perform a task on time or effectively.
- Every time they are asked why they were not present at work they appear to feel guilty about it.
- They start avoiding fellow workers
- They start borrowing money from close fellow employees and lying about its use.
- Frequent hospitalization and minor injuries on the head, hands, neck and so on.
The general behavior to confirm your suspicions
As co-workers or HR personnel if a person is getting down due to alcohol and substance abuse at this stage is you can know if:
- The co-employees continue complaining about him not doing his share of work and they have to cover for him more than it is necessary.
- He also [tag-tec]overreacts[/tag-tec] when ask why he expects someone else to do his tasks always.
- Complains of sickness and keep asking to be permitted out of job early.
- Make false statement especially if asked how far he has gone with a particular project.
Job performance during the early stages comprises of:
- Misses the deadlines set for the task he is accountable for.
- His work is not effective because it has lots of errors and end up being repeated by another person or him or herself.
- He has low efficiency when performing the assigned tasks.
- At middle stage, his boss gives him the first warning.
Late middle stage
During this stage, the following specific signs can be used to establish cases of [tag-tec]alcohol[tag-tec] and substance abuse.
These include:
- The alcoholic or substance abuser takes frequent days off just like one would attend to his private job.
- During the lunch break, this person might not return to the work station, perhaps because he meets other alcoholics.
- They keep saying they do not feel like eating especially if the workplace offer lunch for its employees, and they then get a chance to go out.
- At this stage, too they will make statements like “I want to drink alone” If asked why they say “I do not want to talk about it”.
- The general behavior to confirm your suspicions further as co-workers or HR personnel if a person is getting down due to alcohol and substance abuse at this stage is:
- Aggressive behavior- we all know how alcoholics can get especially because they can not control their tongue and in the work place, they may be very rude to both the boss and co-workers.
- Domestic interference with his work- it is at this point that one may be able to predict if the family, relationship or financial strains is what makes them ask for a bottle only.
- Financial difficulties- it is only mid month and they have nothing, yet they may be earning more than every other person in their line of duty. They keep borrowing.
- More hospitalization as they continue abusing alcohol and substance that could be dangerous drugs.
Job performance during the late middle stages comprises of:
- Performs way far below the organization expectations and standards
- The HR personnel may at this point be forced to take punitive disciplinary action because his supervisor was unable to get through his head.
Approaching terminal stage
The specific sign to tell you that the employee needs your intervention and help is this:
- When you ask him or her, the answer is outright that “my job interferes with my drinking”. So this should tell you that he will only be coming to job when he remembers to but will demand his pay.
The general behavior to authenticate your suspicions finally as HR personnel if a person is getting down due to alcohol and substance abuse at this stage is:
- Carry bottles of [tag-tec]alcohol[/tag-tec] to the job place and drinks from them openly.
- He or she becomes completely undependable with even the smallest and easiest tasks there is. Repeated hospitalization which means that the organization pays him or her in advance so he can pay the amount above his medical allowance set by the company.
- Serious financial difficulties and family problems such as kids lacking school fees, or basic needs, something you could find out as a personnel officer if you investigated further.
Job performance during approaching terminal stage
- The worker becomes generally incompetent and perhaps only dismissal would clear the mess he created.
- Long hospitalization may be a way to initiate his termination decision.
- You can see from the above four stages that before you can really accuse an employee of [tag-tec]alcohol[/tag-tec] and substance abuse; there are several behavior patterns you must observe as a HR manager in his or her work place.
Being an alcoholic is a problem that many people have become slaves of and at some point stopping completely depending on the kind of steps take to help them.
This is why the companies must set up a program that addresses the steps that should be taken to help someone who has become an alcohol or drug addict.
Dismissing them without at least guiding them how they can get help is not only irrational work ethic but inhuman conduct.
