Workplace Drinking Culture

I have to agree that the sentiment seems strange to me. All my employers have had multiple receptions, celebratory drinks or lunches where alcohol was served and consumed. No one ever got drunk or misbehaved because of it. People are smart enough to be moderate in their alcohol consumption.Note that in my country (Belgium), alcohol consumption at work is illegal, so these events were always after work hours or during lunch breaks. Technically, people had to badge out before consuming alcohol.

Also alcohol flowing at work? I’m no teetotaler but isn’t that a recipe for trouble? Assuming we’re not just talking about sharing a few beers after hours. I’ve worked with people who drank on the job to the point where they were working totally shitfaced, and it’s not pretty. If they’re meeting with other teams or customers, they’re going to be an embarrassment, and if they’re checking in code... let’s not even go there. Not to mention how Silicon Valley is now all wrapped around the axle in “h

none of those are any more pro drinking on the job culture than any other job.you still have work to do, and you probably still have colleagues whose time is valuable that aren't as big on drinking as you think they are.drinking and having fun is great. at my company, if i wanted us all to drink, everyone got the afternoon off and we went out.

Alcohol is a powerful drug. It's a little weird to put that expectation out there, that your future employees will drink beer with you. I drink alcohol occasionally in the absence of better drugs, but still, I'd probably choose not to apply to a company on the basis of that comment (and also because I don't want to be expected to socialize with coworkers).

I've had friends who described the culture at their companies, and it sounded like everybody worked through an alcoholic haze. Somehow I've never end up at companies like that.Although at one company there were occasional after-hours jaunts to a bar, they weren't attended by management, and nobody kept track of who attended and who abstained.When I gave up drinking for a few years during my divorce, I was definitely in the minority of non-drinkers, but I never seemed to have

Not the OP, but some people are offended by the mere mention of drinks, and that looked like the case there. I personally don't like to go out for drinks, and this can be detrimental to my career, but I wouldn't impose my preference on others.

Wow, lay down the hate.You're talking about this as if the idea was to get everyone drunk at work. Spoilers: it's not.Sure, "I do not want to drink at the workplace, I don't mix work and fun". It's sad you feel that way but you can't deny the team-building aspects.The good thing about "drinking at work" is that it doesn't exclude anyone. You don't have to think "we're going to bar X, how will I get there? then come back ho

I find it very strange they banned drinking. I work at a large finance company that you have probably heard of, and happy hours are very common and practically encouraged since it helps with team bonding, relieves stress, etc. We even are allowed a beer at lunch if we go out per policy.

Its not the presense of the thing or the ability to decline, its the impact on those not taking part. If colleagues consuming alcohol exclude non-drinkers by their intentional or unintentional actions or make them feel like less of a team member (by say getting real drunk which is always annoying to non-drinkers), and drinking is not in the job description, then companies should not make it a part of a work event (IMO).

What this article doesn't tell you is that this is only historical practice among people making deals with their own money--entrepreneurs--or higher-up executives or partners in a law firm etc.As someone who works for a living for someone else, you are doing yourself no favors by getting drunk around your peers or bosses. As an employee you are trading your labor for money. You aren't necessarily going to be putting anything at stake personally, so whether or not there exists trust