The Beginning Of The End Of Prohibition

[BobUp]

85. Original question; So you think your employer can demand that you do not drink?

I don't have an employer. But when I did, some of my employers mandated many things, even a dress code, no long hair, no piercings, no this and no that, no showing up for work intoxicated.

If a person drinks to excess, and it affects their job performance, an employer would probably dismiss or fire a person, or help the substance abuser than to mandate. As far as I know, in America, people are free to do whatever they wish, off the clock, it's the burden of proof of the employer to prove a person is a substance abuser.

Since "drinking" I assume alcoholic beverages you're talking about here, alcohol is legal in most states I believe, while some drugs like cocaine and marijuana is still considered illegal in some states. Employers presently have the right to drug test, and still have the right to fire or dismiss for drug use.

In my experience with a former employer, after a fender bender, I had to have a drug and alcohol screening immediately after, my employer claimed it was an insurance requirement. But I do recall signing an agreement when first hired pertaining to random drug/alcohol testing.

While I believe that what a person does off the clock is their personal and private life, a person can still be held accountable for their actions off the clock. It depends on what kind of a agreement the employees signed, how their contract is worded, if any. And also what state and federal laws govern "off duty drinking"

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Alcoholism is the single largest and most economically destructive addiction in America as an estimated seventeen million Americans struggle with some phase of alcohol addiction at a cost to industry of $186 billion each year, according to a survey by the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. The business costs of alcohol abuse can include loss of productivity, damages caused by an alcoholic employee, and any treatment required to help an employee recover from their addiction. Federal and state laws dictate at what point an employer may terminate an alcoholic employee; any employer faced with the negative affects of alcohol in the workplace should consult an experienced attorney before taking any action.

http://employment-law.freeadvice.com/employment-law/firing/firing-employee-alcoholism.htm