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Drinking Increases Risk of Sexual Harassment
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FRIDAY, April 2 (HealthDayNews) -- Female workers face a greater risk of sexual harassment when their male co-workers drink more alcohol in and around the workplace, such as an extra glass of beer or wine at lunch or during happy hour, says a Cornell University study. Researchers surveyed 1,353 blue-collar and service workers (including 236 women) in the manufacturing, service and construction sectors. The study found women face a more than twofold increased risk of harassment for every additional alcoholic drink consumed by male co-workers during and around working hours. This link remained even when the researchers controlled for a number of other factors, such as the proportion of women in a work unit or demographic characteristics. "The survey's findings have important implications for the prevention of sexual harassment in the workplace," study co-author Samuel Bacharach, director of the R. Brinkley Smithers Institute for Alcohol-Related Workplace Studies at Cornell's School of Industrial and Labor Relations, said in a prepared statement. "They suggest that sexual harassment prevention policies may be less effective in work contexts characterized by a strong and permissive drinking culture. In such environments, it may be more useful to focus prevention efforts on changing employee perceptions about the acceptability of drinking during or around working hours," Bacharach said. More information The U.S. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism has more about alcohol and the workplace.
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