Email Bob |
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Drinking on the job —
Don’t do it!
| It may be common practice in many
bars, nightclubs and adult nightclubs for bartenders, managers
and entertainers to drink alcoholic beverages while on the
job. But as bar management expert Bob Johnson suggests, it
could be the worst mistake these people could make —
and could put you out of business. |
If you are an owner or general
manager who allows your staff to consume beverage alcohol
during the scope of their employment—i.e., “drinking
on the job”—you ought to be taken outside and
shot!
Okay, that may be an exaggeration.
But when you carefully examine this issue, allowing your staff
to drink on the job is the ultimate act of stupidity, irresponsibility,
and disrespect for the welfare of your employees and your
business. Owners and managers must protect their business
from potential lawsuits, and allowing your employees
to drink while they work leaves you wide open. You’re
taking the chance of losing it all. So why would anyone put
themselves in this position? The mentality of “it’s
good for sales” ranks rightup there with …duh-h-h-h-h-h.
Does the fate of your business really come down to how much
the employees can slug away for you?
Ethyl alcohol affects judgment and impairs one’s ability
to rationalize or perform a function that requires effective
interpretation or quick reaction. “Misreading”
a situation is commonplace for anyone consuming beverage alcohol,
regardless of the amount consumed. Counting money, making
a judgment call, responding to a pressure situation or settling
a disturbance can only be done with a clear mind. Beverage
alcohol is not a “performance enhancer”! |
| Legally, if there are damages
or injury to a third party and you were involved in the situation
in any way—and it was known that you were under the
influence of alcohol at the time—your company and you
have no reasonable defense. You just lost the case! You probably
don’t have enough money to defend yourself in this kind
of situation. |
Medically, if there is injury
to you while on the clock and you have consumed beverage
alcohol in any quantity, worker’s compensation will
not pay for your medical treatment. You’re on your
own.
Because you work in a heavily scrutinized industry, management
and staff must never be under the influence of beverage
alcohol when confronted by a representative of local law
enforcement or a governmental agency performing a routine
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assignment that wants to ask
questions.
When you, Mr. Owner, hired a bartender or manager, did
you include the consumption of beverage alcohol as part
of the job? Of course you didn’t. So why would you
allow it? If a bartender or manager chooses to consume a
beverage alcohol product for their personal consumption
while working, they’re stealing from you! It’s
grounds for immediate termination.
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| It’s no different than working
at Wal-Mart and helping yourself to a few DVDs or a pack of
gum and not paying for it. It’s called “shoplifting”
and people go to jail for stealing company property. |
I have too many bartender friends who got
into the habit of having a couple of drinks while working.
The customer buys the bartender a drink, and the bartender
gladly accepts. Now the bartender is up to “quite
a few” every day. Then the bartender finds himself
“having to have a few” on their days off. Then
they have to have several drinks a day just to “balance
out.”
This is called addiction. It’s called alcoholism,
and they’ve got a problem they’re going to have
to battle the rest of their life. As the owner or general
manager, are you encouraging these people to have drinks
at work? If so, you may be the one responsible for this
person’s alcoholism.
Alcohol is for the customer to consume, not the bartender
or other |
staff members. Bartenders simply prepare
it and serve it—that’s it! Why can’t bartenders
or servers simply accept a non-alcoholic beverage, like
a Red Bull, Frappuccino, cup of coffee, bottle of water,
Coke, etc.? Why does it have to be a drink containing beverage
alcohol? Police don’t drink alcohol while working,
bankers don’t drink alcohol while working, retail
clerks don’t drink alcohol while working, emergency
room personnel don’t drink alcohol while working,
sports teams don’t drink alcohol while working, so
why do bartenders and managers feel they’re entitled
to consume alcohol while they’re working? It’s
stupid, it’s unprofessional, it’s self-serving
and in many states, it’s illegal (and it should be
illegal in all states).
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| Charley is on my mind everyday.
He was a bartender who worked at a place where I was a regular
customer. Charley was allowed, and encouraged, to drink with
the customers. He was my friend and I did everything I could
to get him to stop drinking at work. “It doesn’t
matter what they allow you to do, Charley, stop the drinking!”
I would say. “You shouldn’t have to be told. Professional
bartenders don’t drink while working—ever!” |
Professional managers
don’t drink while working either. But if the managers
are drinking, don’t you think every staff member is
drinking? Of course they are. Managers set the tone. Managers
lead by example.
Charley had quite a bit of Patron one night, and then mixed
it with a few Jagerbombs. He didn’t make it home that
night—nor did the family of four he crashed into on
their way to early morning mass. He fell asleep at the wheel
from the drinking and crossed over the center line. The
case is pending, but a massive lawsuit has been brought
against the owner, investors and managers of the club where
Charley worked. You see, the owner and managers encouraged
their people to drink while working. It’s good for
business, they rationalized.
And Charley? He survived the crash (the drinker usually
does). But his life is over. Charley has to be sedated
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everyday to stop the crying.
He can’t eat. He can’t do anything. He was once
a really good guy, but today he can’t live with himself
for what he did to those innocent people on their way to
church. They’re gone.
So go ahead bartenders, managers, servers, security persons,
keep drinking at your place of work. It’s not your
investment or your liability. Somebody else owns the club,
so what do you care?! Yeah! Party down! Continue to show
the ultimate disrespect to your owner. Do something for
him that could possibly bankrupt his entire investment and
land him in jail. Go get yourself another shot of Patron,
Mr. Manager! Do a shot with your bartender! Yeah! Follow
it up with a Jagerbomb or two! Yeah! You’re the life
of the part now, aren’t you?
I wish you knew my friend Charley.
- Bob Johnson, CBM
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