Festive workers pay the price for partying through the ‘Cinderella hour’

The festive season is in full swing, but new research reveals that a fifth of workers need to leave the office party by 11pm in order to turn up sober at work the next day.

The festive season is in full swing, but new research reveals that a fifth of workers need to leave the office party by 11pm in order to turn up sober at work the next day.
A study by Aviva shows 20% of revellers admit to drinking more than 10 units at each festive event, which means they need to slip away from the party proceedings before midnight to ensure they sober up in time for the start of the working day.
More than three quarters of those polled (86%) said they attended up to five Christmas events during December.
Of the 3,000 workers surveyed, the average amount of alcohol drunk at each event was 5.5 units, way over the Government’s recommended daily allowance for both men (3-4 units a day) and women (2-3 units a day).
The research also reveals that Christmas parties are taking their toll on people’s sleep, which in turn could have a significant impact on productivity and health and safety at work.
To make matters worse, nearly one in five people (17%) admit to pulling a sickie the next day, meaning that the UK economy could be faced with over 39 million lost hours due to the Christmas hangover.
The survey also shows nearly a third of workers (32%)  have been so tired or hungover they’ve been unable to function at work the next day.
Almost one in 10 men (9%) admit to powering on through to the next morning without going to bed at all.
Only one in five (21%) make sure they get home early enough to have a good night’s sleep.
Dr Doug Wright, head of clinical development at Aviva UK Health, said: ”It’s important that staff have a chance to let their hair down and enjoy socialising with friends and colleagues at this time of the year.
”However, a lack of sleep and the general ‘morning after the night before’ hangover can leave you feeling the worse for wear.  Clearly for those who need to drive or operate machinery the next day the dangers of overdoing it are obvious but being in good form is equally important for many jobs.
”With alcohol flowing freely it can be easy to lose track of exactly how much you’re drinking, especially if generous fellow party-goers are topping your glass up continually.
”For those that need to be at work the next day it’s a good rule of thumb to work backwards from your planned start time – one hour per unit to be processed through your system.
”You can also help the process along by ensuring you don’t drink on an empty stomach and alternate alcohol with soft drinks.  None of these are fail safe options though, so make sure you plan ahead to keep yourself and others safe.”

• Vote  
• 0
• 0
• You already voted!

• Tags:
• Lifestyle Working mums Working parents