Russ got suspended from high school when he was sixteen years old and eventually got a job at a local brewery. For the past eight years he has gained a reputation as a hard-working and diligent employee who rarely calls off work due to sickness.

Nearly six-and-a-half months ago he started dating a young lady named Emma. They appeared to hit it off right away and looked as if they had a lot of good times together.

The Hazardous Drinking Begins

When Russ met Emma, he hardly ever drank. This circumstance changed when they began seeing one another on a fairly usual basis. In point of fact, everything was going great until Emma called Russ one night approximately 4:30 AM and said that she had to breakup and that she couldn’t explain the reason at that moment.

The next morning before he went to work, Russ went to Emma’s apartment and found out in an instant that she had already moved out. Russ took this exceptionally hard. If truth be told, he was astonished because they seemed to be getting along so very well.

When Excessive and Abusive Drinking Leads to Work Problems

So what did Russ do about Emma’s leaving? Instead of working through his pain and sorrow, he began getting drunk nearly every night. It didn’t take long for his fellow employees or for his boss to notice that Russ was coming to work late at least twice per week and that he frequently called off ill. Not only this but some of the workers made an appointment with staff in Human Resources Department and mentioned that Russ frequently came to work with a strong smell 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 Thursday afternoon he called Russ into his office. He told Russ that he had recently noticed a profound change in his work performance, attendance, behavior, and in his sick time.

When a Manager Can Motivate an Employee to Get Help For His or Her Heavy and Hazardous Drinking

Russ’s supervisor also stated that a number of his fellow employees reported him to Human Resources because he had been coming to work with the strong smell of alcohol. His boss then stated the following: “Russ, your fellow employees are not reporting you to Human Resources to get you into any trouble or because they dislike you but instead because they are concerned about you. And I care too. I don’t want to butt into your life outside of work, but it is apparent that you are manifesting some of the common symptoms and signs of excessive drinking. As a result, I want you to go and see a healthcare professional in the employee’s assistance program to discuss your drinking situation and your depression.”

“Russ, I’m no physician or a counselor, but I have seen more than a few of my relatives and friends go through some really negative alcohol side effects. Furthermore, I have also seen the signs of alcoholism first-hand in my own family. When people have problems with drinking, these problems not only affect the drinker, but they also make an impact on his or her family, co-workers, friends, relatives, and neighbors.”

Russ respected his manager a lot and consequently followed through with his suggestion the very next day when he called and scheduled an appointment with a counselor in the employee’s assistance program.

Russ is Still Depressed But Feels Some Hope That He Will Get Back on Track With His Life and Begin Feeling More Happiness

Even though Russ didn’t automatically 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 him some emotional relief for the first time in more than a few weeks and he actually felt some hope that he would get his life back on track and start to feel more happiness.