In this week’s guest column, Dr Georges Petitjean argues that addiction is a workplace issue hiding in plain sight – shaped by stress, culture and stigma – and calls on employers to create safer, recovery-ready workplaces where staff can seek support earlier.
Did you know that workplace stress and culture may shape substance use more than many employers realise? In 2025, Alcohol Change UK reported that 64% of UK workers drink alcohol for work-related reasons, with stress, pressure and anxiety among the drivers.
Bupa’s workplace research found that 48% of employees had turned to addictive behaviours to cope with workplace stress, while 40% said workplace culture itself contributed to the problem. These are not marginal signals. They tell us that addiction is not only a private health matter; it is also a workplace culture issue.
THE HIDDEN IMPACT OF WORKPLACE ADDICTION
As a health professional, I regularly see the consequences of that disconnect. Many employees do not get support early, and some do not get it at all. More often, they access help only after substantial harm has already been done: to their health, family life, confidence, finances and, sometimes, employment. Research has also shown that workplace stress negatively impacts personal relationships and health, reinforcing how closely workplace pressures and personal wellbeing are connected. By the time an addiction problem becomes visible to an employer, it may already have been hidden for years.
Why is it hidden? Because stigma still shapes behaviour. In the same Bupa research, 45% of employees said they would rather hide an addiction than discuss it at work. This is the blind spot. Employers often assume they “do not have a problem” because nobody is disclosing one. But silence is not the same as absence. More often, it reflects fear: fear of judgment, fear of being labelled, fear of disciplinary consequences, and fear that a health issue will be treated as a character flaw.
WHY EMPLOYERS NEED TO ADDRESS ADDICTION
This matters because the workplace is one of the best opportunities we have to reduce harm earlier. Most adults with substance use disorders are not outside the labour market. In the United States, the CDC reports that nearly two-thirds of adults with a substance use disorder were employed, while another CDC source cites national data showing that 70% of adults with a substance use disorder are employed.
The exact proportion varies by country and dataset, but the principle is clear: work is not separate from addiction. It is one of the places where addiction is most likely to be hidden, and therefore one of the places where earlier support could make the greatest difference.
THE COST OF IGNORING ADDICTION AND WORKPLACE STRESS
Ignoring the issue has consequences, and they are not only moral or clinical. They are operational and financial too. Alcohol Change UK’s workplace material, reproduced by the British Safety Council, notes that lost productivity from alcohol costs the economy more than £5 billion a year in England alone. It also estimates that, for an organisation with around 200 employees, alcohol-related harm costs more than £30,000 a year.
The same source cites 17 million sick days taken annually because of alcohol and states that up to 5% of workplace absence is alcohol-related. These are national figures, but employers see local versions of the same pattern in absence, presenteeism, avoidable mistakes, strained relationships, performance management time and safety risks.
The point is not that every stressed employee will develop an addiction. They will not. Nor is the answer for workplaces to become treatment providers. They should not. But responsible business does mean recognising when a taboo subject is creating avoidable harm and preventable cost.
HOW ORGANISATIONS CAN BETTER SUPPORT EMPLOYEES
So what can organisations do to better support employees struggling with addiction?
Create safer conversations around addiction
First, make the conversation safer. Most workplaces are now more comfortable talking about mental health than they were a decade ago. Addiction has not benefited from the same progress. Leaders can start by using clear, non-moralising language and explicitly framing addiction as a health issue rather than a disciplinary identity.
Review workplace culture and alcohol norms
Second, review culture, not just policy. If social connection at work still revolves around alcohol, or if stress is routinely normalised and people are expected to “blow off steam” through drinking, the organisation may unintentionally be reinforcing risk. Simple changes can make a difference: more daytime events, better alcohol-free options, and rewards that do not default to alcohol.
Train managers to support employees
Third, equip managers to notice early signs without turning them into clinicians. The aim is not diagnosis. It is confidence: knowing how to start a conversation, how to respond without shaming, and how to direct someone towards appropriate help.
Make employee support pathways clearer
Fourth, make support pathways clearer. Employees should know what support exists internally, whether that is occupational health, an employee assistance programme, wellbeing support or HR guidance. They should also know that confidential support exists outside work through NHS services, local drug and alcohol treatment providers, gambling support, peer groups and family support organisations.
Encourage employee networks to support addiction recovery
Employee networks also have an important role to play. Addiction does not sit in one corner of organisational life. It intersects with wellbeing, inclusion, psychological safety and belonging. That is one reason it should not be left to a policy document or treated solely as a disciplinary matter.
Create WARM and recovery-ready workplaces
This is part of what WARM was created to address. WARM, the Workplace Addiction & Recovery Movement, is built on a simple premise: if addiction remains taboo at work, people will continue to seek support too late, if at all. My aim is to help organisations open up more informed, less stigmatising conversations so that earlier support becomes more accessible.
HOW RESPONSIBLE EMPLOYERS CAN TACKLE ADDICTION
Responsible business is often described in terms of purpose, culture and long-term value. Addiction belongs in that conversation – not because every employer must become an expert in treatment, but because every employer helps shape the conditions in which people either stay silent or seek support.
And that may be the most important question leaders can ask: if someone in your organisation was struggling, would they feel safe enough to tell you before the damage became impossible to hide?
Employee network leads and sponsors can play an important role in changing this. WARM is looking for founding organisations to take part in its 2026 pilot and help open up safer, more informed conversations about addiction and recovery at work.
If you lead a wellbeing, inclusion, disability, LGBTQ+, women’s, carers’, ethnicity, veterans’ or early careers network, and you want to help make your organisation more recovery-ready, I would love to hear from you. Connect with me here.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dr Georges Petitjean is Medical Lead and Clinical Director at Inclusion Drugs and Alcohol Treatment Services, part of Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust. He is also the founder of WARM (the Workplace Addiction & Recovery Movement), a Community Interest Company, which works with organisations to reduce stigma, raise awareness and support more recovery-ready workplaces. Find out more about the WARM programme here.
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