Substance use - drugs, alcohol and tobacco
What it is
Excessive use of drugs, alcohol and/or tobacco can have wide ranging affects for both the user and those around them. It can have a detrimental impact on mental and physical health, and while often giving a temporary benefit the user will ultimately experience damage to health and wellbeing.
- 14.4% of people 18 years and over in England smoked cigarettes in 2018. This was 15.4% in Nottinghamshire
- In England in 2017, 28% of men and 14% of women reported drinking in excess of the recommended 14 units per week.
- NHS Digital reported that around 8.5% (1 in 12) people aged 16 to 59 in England and Wales had taken illicit drugs within the last year (2018).
Why it should matter to you
These issues can have a negative effect on the employee and also on the workplace as a whole. Employers are legally obliged to protect their employees' health and wellbeing under the Health and Safety at Work Act.
As an employer, you should learn to recognise warning signs such as:
- changes in performance and/or behaviour
- unexplained or frequent days off
- workplace accidents or near misses
- fluctuations in productivity
These signs can be indicators of other factors such as stress, illness or personal issues. If an employer recognises any of these signs they should have in place tools, policies and procedures to ensure that the employee is managed in a safe, proactive way that looks after the wellbeing of the employee as well as protecting the needs of the workforce as a whole and the employer.
Risk assessments should be carried out looking at the use of machinery and equipment including ladders, vehicles and lifting equipment.
There should also be a policy in place (written in conjunction with your workforce) which should include how support can be accessed.
Steps you can take
You can take several steps to both look after your employees and protect your organisation from the impacts of substance use. These range from putting up posters/infographics such as the one above, to full policy changes.
These are the different levels on offer as part of our free wellbeing at work scheme:
- Bronze: Display and signposting health promotion and information
- Silver: Campaigns health development
- Gold: Training enabling and increasing access to local wellbeing services
- Platinum: Policy changes and culture changes
