Attitudes toward alcohol-related sickness absence and presenteeism: differences across subgroups of the population?

Abstract

Background: More knowledge is needed to understand costly behaviors such as absence from work or reduced efficiency at work due to alcohol. The aim of this study was: (i) to map employees’ attitudes toward alcohol-related sickness absence and presenteeism and (ii) to examine how these attitudes vary across subgroups of the population. Methods: Data stem from a web-survey among 18–69 year old Norwegians (N = 1407). The respondents evaluated six situations with alcohol-related sickness absence and presenteeism. The employees’ own drinking habits, alcohol-related sickness absence, and presenteeism were mapped. Results: Attitudes toward alcohol-related absence were more restrictive than attitudes toward presenteeism. Both behaviors were condemned more strongly with frequent occurrence. Employees with a high intoxication frequency and/or own experience with these behaviors were more tolerant. Women were less tolerant of alcohol-related absence than men, and employees with a higher educational level were less tolerant of alcohol-related presenteeism than those with a low educational level. The other variables were not significant controlled for all other variables. Conclusion: Alcohol-related sickness absence and presenteeism are generally not tolerated among Norwegian employees, unless it occurs very infrequently. Employees who were frequently intoxicated and who reported having had alcohol-related absence and presenteeism themselves were more tolerant.

This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis Group in Journal of Substance Use on 11/11/2016, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/14659891.2016.1216617