Russ got suspended from high school when he was fifteen years old and eventually got a job at a local chemical plant. For the past four years he has gained a reputation as a hard-working and diligent person who almost never calls off work because of illness.
Approximately eight months ago he started dating a young lady named Emma. They seemed to get along real well right away and gave people the impression that they had a lot of fun together.
The Irresponsible and Hazardous Drinking Begins
When Russ met Emma, he almost never drank. This circumstance totally changed when Emma and Russ started seeing one another on a fairly normal basis. In truth, everything was going great until Emma called Russ one night around 4:30 AM and said that she had to stop dating him and that she couldn’t explain the reason at that moment.
The next morning before he went to work, Russ drove to her apartment and found out right away that Emma had already moved out. Russ took this very hard. In point of fact, he was surprised because they seemed to be getting along so very well.
When Hazardous and Heavy Drinking Leads to Problems at Work
So what did Russ do about Emma’s leaving? Instead of working through his pain, he began getting intoxicated just about every night. It didn’t take long for his buddies at work or for his supervisor to notice that Russ was coming to work late at least once per week and that he time after time called off sick. Not only this but some of his co-workers made an appointment with staff in Human Resources Department and mentioned that Russ continually came to work with a strong odor of alcohol on his clothes or on his breath.
Russ’s boss heard about all of this from Human Resources and also from Russ’s fellow employees. So one Monday morning he called Russ into his office. He told Russ that he had recently noticed a clear-cut change in his behavior, attendance, sick time, and in his work performance.
When a Manager Can Motivate an Employee to Get Help For His or Her Hazardous and Irresponsible Drinking
Russ’s manager also articulated that a number of his fellow employees reported him to Human Resources because he had been coming to work with the strong odor of alcohol. His supervisor then stated the following: “Russ, your co-workers are not reporting you to the Human Resources Department to get you into any trouble or because they don’t like you but rather because they care about you. And I care too. I don’t want to butt into your personal life, but it is apparent that you are exhibiting some of the common signs and symptoms of problem drinking. As a consequence, I want you to go and see a counselor in the employee’s assistance program to discuss your drinking situation and your depression.”
“Russ, I’m no doctor or a psychologist, but I have seen quite a few of my relatives and friends experience some very negative alcohol side effects. Not only this but I have also witnessed the signs of alcoholism first-hand in my own family. When individuals have problems with drinking, these difficulties not only affect the drinker, but they also make an impact on his or her neighbors, co-workers, family, friends, and relatives.”
Russ respected his boss quite a lot and consequently followed through with his recommendation the next work day when he called and scheduled an appointment with a therapist in the employee’s assistance program.
Russ is Still Depressed But Feels Some Hope That He Will Get His Life Back on Track
Although Russ didn’t necessarily feel any better or less depressed about the sorrow he still feels for Emma, he felt comfort knowing that his boss and his fellow employees cared about him and wanted what’s best for him. This gave Russ some psychological relief for the first time in a number of weeks and he truthfully felt some hope that he would get his life back on track.