Topic: Workplace drinking

[Charlie Adams fried egg]

I saw an article in the Guardian about this
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/jan/18/office-drinking-culture-slowed-down-in-the-90s-but-not-for-journalists-and-now-they-are-running-the-country

Given recent events, it's pretty clear there's a thriving drinking culture still in No 10.

I'd be interested to know what it's like in other industries?

When I started in the financial sector in the very early 90's I was regaled with tales of how much drinking was done in the 60's 70's and 80's and a few of the old guard took great delight in telling me how I'd missed out.
As the article said, after work pints were still common as were a couple of lunchtime ones on a Friday. 2 and driving was still seen as acceptable then, which is something I'd never do now. One older colleague told me how in the 70's he wouldn't drink at weekends because he'd had so much as part of his normal working week. Some of the older heads were still in the habit of a few pints at lunch, close the office door in the afternoon, then a couple of pints and the evening paper at the pub on their way home, but within a couple of years they were all restructured out.

[Crosby Nick]

Hard to remember given I’ve not been in an office for the best part of 2 years!

When I started out a Friday lunchtime pint (two if possible) was quite common. Post work drinks probably two or three times a week as well although that wasn’t really a workplace drinking culture, was just young people fancying some beers!

In recent years it’s felt like less of a thing, maybe I’m just not invited anymore! The odd Friday lunch, and maybe one or two after work but that was about it.

[Elmo!]

I'm In the oil industry. We are generally expected to observe the same health and safety rules as they do offshore so absolutely no drinking in the office for us. Even when they put on Christmas lunch in the canteen it's alcohol free beer and wine.

[rob1966]

Worked in a hotel kitchen when I was 20/21, I'm not surprised car insurance is so loaded for people who work in licensed premises, I was drinking right through the day, doing up to 70 pints a week.

Once I started working in Tool Hire, then there was no drinking at all, until I moved over into the IT Dept in 2001. Then we'd go the pub for dinner about once a week, have a couple of pints, but even that died a death. Needless to say, on the HGV's, I don't drink

[Kenny's Jacket]

Ive had a strong drinking culture in the office all my career

Worked in glasgow and every lunch time 2/3 pints

We got 90 mins on a Friday  so that was 4/5

In KL we would send the staff home/mosque for prayers on Friday lunchtime, and get cans in the office just incase the phone rang, if it did it would be the odd Chinese clients.

our Manchester office, by 4 pm we had gone to the offy, having got back from a 2 hour pub meeting. if you had a good week you can get on it by 3.  Most would then stay in the office beyond half 5


 

[Barneylfc∗]

Used to love going for lunch time pints.
On my old working pattern about 6/7 years ago when I had to start between 11 and 1, there would have been days that I'd go for a pint on my first break about 2, then take a 2 hour lunch and go for pints, then another pint on my evening break about half 6.
On the current working pattern me and a few mates from work would still have went for lunch time pints on a regular basis, for a while it was at least an hour a day. Post work pints were about once a week.

[CraigDS]

I was waiting for Barney's post in here 

[Crosby Nick]

I was waiting for Barney's post in here 

I think the Right Honourable Kenny has surpassed him!

[rob1966]

One of my mates was an apprentice Centre Lathe Turner at an engineering firm just down from the Sandon Lion on Regent Road, they used to make the huge rams that opened the doors on car ferries, rams for compactors, skip wagons, stuff like that, all heavy stuff. I met him in the pub a couple of dinner times, fucking hell, they used to hammer the ale and then go back to work.

[El Lobo]

Breakfast - Pint and a ricecake
Brunch - Pint
Lunch - Pint and a ricecake
Afternoon snack - Pint
Dinner - Pint and a ricecake
Tea - Pint
Supper - Pint and a ricecake

[Kenny's Jacket]

One of my mates was an apprentice Centre Lathe Turner at an engineering firm just down from the Sandon Lion on Regent Road, they used to make the huge rams that opened the doors on car ferries, rams for compactors, skip wagons, stuff like that, all heavy stuff. I met him in the pub a couple of dinner times, fucking hell, they used to hammer the ale and then go back to work.

fucking hell, I only had to make sales calls

[Charlie Adams fried egg]

fucking hell, I only had to make sales calls

I think there's still a fair bit in sales type environments.
I have a client that runs a recruitment company and they have a basement bar, the better the week they have had the earlier they are encouraged to get in there on a Friday. The company keep it well stocked and the staff are getting the first few hours of their Friday night paid for.

Other than the odd night out habitual every day drinking was virtually non existent by the mid 90's.

[Barneylfc∗]

I think the Right Honourable Kenny has surpassed him!

Only thing I have to rival that is the Fridays when I used to start at 1, immediately into a team meeting for an hour, take a break at 2 to go for a pint, back to work at half 2 then take a half day and leave at 3 

Good Friday was always a challenge here to find a pub willing to serve. There were 1 or 2 occasions when we'd get a few cans from the off licence and go sit somewhere or book one of the lobby rooms in the office and sit there for 2 hours.

[Crosby Nick]

Good Friday being a non drinking day in NI was a shock to the system for me!

[CraigDS]

Breakfast - Pint and a ricecake
Brunch - Pint
Lunch - Pint and a ricecake
Afternoon snack - Pint
Dinner - Pint and a ricecake
Tea - Pint
Supper - Pint and a ricecake

Let yourself go?

[Kenny's Jacket]

I think there's still a fair bit in sales type environments.
I have a client that runs a recruitment company and they have a basement bar, the better the week they have had the earlier they are encouraged to get in there on a Friday. The company keep it well stocked and the staff are getting the first few hours of their Friday night paid for.

Other than the odd night out habitual every day drinking was virtually non existent by the mid 90's.

thats my industry,

the office fridge has cans of lager, bottles of porceco and the odd pasty



If you do the billing you can do the chilling - Industry moto

[Barneylfc∗]

Good Friday being a non drinking day in NI was a shock to the system for me!

Thankfully a thing of the past now 

[Barrowred]

One of my mates was an apprentice Centre Lathe Turner at an engineering firm just down from the Sandon Lion on Regent Road, they used to make the huge rams that opened the doors on car ferries, rams for compactors, skip wagons, stuff like that, all heavy stuff. I met him in the pub a couple of dinner times, fucking hell, they used to hammer the ale and then go back to work.

Used to work in the machine shop in the shipyard. Used to get an hour dinner up to the early 90's, it seemed the whole yard went for a pint or 3 on a Friday dinner time meaning very little if anything got done for the rest of the day. It all stopped once the working times changed and we went to 30 minute dinners.
Still used to have plenty to drink the night before and come in to work still feeling the affects for a good few years after though. That's all stopped now with the introduction of random drug and alcohol tests.

[gazzam1963]

I started in the nationalised electric industry in 1980 and spent the first ten months at a training centre in  hoylake by which time I was 17 . Then we were sent to our local depot to continue our apprenticeship which meant actually doing real work in people’s house all over Liverpool .

When arriving  you were then out on a variety of domestic jobs with Either one or two electricians and swapped around quite regularly. Within a few months you just got absorbed into the drinking culture with certain lads who loved a drink . Two/ three  pints where just the usual every day of the week and then you would make sure you were back and blitzing certain jobs so you could finish at 2-50 to get into the nearest ale house for three o clock last orders ( for people of a certain age this was a thing ) .

There was the odd occasion when a made up union meeting would result in not going back at all for the afternoon if the spark got a taste for the ale 😀 , great days and most days it was two to three pints a bite to
eat then back to work with a mouthful of polos .

[Ray K]

Breakfast - Pint and a ricecake
Brunch - Pint
Lunch - Pint and a ricecake
Afternoon snack - Pint
Dinner - Pint and a ricecake
Tea - Pint
Supper - Pint and a ricecake

Christ mate, you sound like you have a serious problem.

Have you tried going to Ricecakeolics Anonymous?

[AlphaDelta]

I've worked in the civil service since I was 19 and its always been a culture in some form or another, even to this day.

I used to work in the Jobcentre which happened to have a Wetherspoon's directly opposite. In those days frontline staff (those of us who dealt with the public face-to-face) got a 20 minute break in the morning, an hour lunch and a 20 minute break in the afternoon. Coupled with Wethers selling bottles of Rolling Rock for £1 each we were in our element!

At the time, we were a group of lads and girls in our early twenties who genuinely enjoyed each other's company and working together.

Nowadays there is still a civil service drinking culture, just not as widespread. I work in Old Hall Street and we are surrounded by countless bars and pubs so any birthday, leaving, promotion, retirement or even just a Friday is celebrated with after work drinks.
Occasionally, mostly on a Friday, there will be a dinnertime pint or two as the pub is literally a two minute walk from the office. I've knocked that on the head though, number one I feel knackered when I come back to the office and number two, I'm a manager and I'm wanting to go as high as possible, so coming back smelling of ale is not ideal.

That said, I try to encourage my team to come the pub at least once a month. It's ideal for bonding, relaxing, people getting things off their chest etc.

[Red Ol]

In the 80’s and 90’s 2 pints every lunch time was pretty normal. Only really stopped when the job changed had children and was doing more travelling.  In those days that where all the managers were, in the pub, and To this day I still see people I know who are relatively successful but had no talent/skill/experience and only got where they were because of who they drank with.

[meady1981]

Work in advertising. They actively encourage you to drink. It’s changed a lot in the last 5/10 years day-drinking wise, mainly after work now, but I definitely would go to the pub at least a few lunches a week up until 2016. Thursdays and Fridays were bosses cards behind the bar, at least a few pints and then there was a good chance you wouldn’t go back at all and be hammered by 5, staggering out into the sunlight. If someone called up asking for you to come back as some work was needed you’d be so angry with them. The gall! Mental looking back on it.

One sozzled afternoon, I once accidentally sent an email meant for my mate to a pretty high-up BBC client. It just said FUCK YOU KNOBHEAD. Another time I was playing table tennis and the paddle flew out of my sweaty hand, smashed through the window of the fourth floor, sending the glass falling down into the courtyard where some clients were waiting. And I was a sensible one. It was like a circus.

[Crosby Nick]

Work in advertising. They actively encourage you to drink. It’s changed a lot in the last 5/10 years day-drinking wise, mainly after work now, but I definitely would go to the pub at least a few lunches a week up until 2016. Thursdays and Fridays were bosses cards behind the bar, at least a few pints and then there was a good chance you wouldn’t go back at all and be hammered by 5, staggering out into the sunlight. If someone called up asking for you to come back as some work was needed you’d be so angry with them. The gall! Mental looking back on it.

One sozzled afternoon, I once accidentally sent an email meant for my mate to a pretty high-up BBC client. It just said FUCK YOU KNOBHEAD. Another time I was playing table tennis and the paddle flew out of my sweaty hand, smashed through the window of the fourth floor, sending the glass falling down into the courtyard where some clients were waiting. And I was a sensible one. It was like a circus.

[CraigDS]

Meady is Don Draper Stan Rizzo 

[Andy @ Allerton!]

80s loads
90s some
00s rare
10s virtually none
20s Dunno

[Slick_Beef]

I work in IT in Portugal. Pretty common and not frowned upon to have wine or a beer at lunch still. In one previous job I worked in a bank HQ and the subsidised on-site canteen was selling full bottles of 1.92€ which blew my mind. I don't know how anyone gets anything done!

My first job out here was in a call centre and that was an eye-opener for 21 year old me: After lunch there'd always be coffee and a bottle of homemade aguardente (essentially moonshine), bosses included. It made for some long hazy afternoons and our sales pitches would become quite animated.

These days if I am with colleagues for lunch we'd have wine but I mostly work from home, probably for the best.

[Red_Mist]

First office job was in 1991 in the Port of Liverpool building. Usual 12 noon was a mass exodus to the pub for 3 or 4 pints, more on a Friday. Since 1996 I’ve been subject to strict H&S rules, so as little as a couple of cherry chocolate liqueurs could get me sacked and the random spot checks were/are brutal. Never once risked it.

Never really missed it to be honest. I probably drink a tiny bit too much in general, so enforced sober work hours and pre-work hours are good for me!

By 6pm on a Friday though, I’m usually strangely parched!

[west_london_red]

I work in public transport, and although I work in IT everyone is expected to observe the same rules as drivers and operational staff so no drinking before or during work including even if you are on call and no exceptions are made. If I’m going for a drink after work or we’re having our Christmas lunch I turn my phone off as I don’t even want to answer the phone after I had a drink or answer an email.

People are occasionally randomly tested, and I know one person who was grassed up and resigned before he was sacked (felt sorry for him as he had only been with us a couple of months and didn’t know the rules)

[Brissyred]

One of my mates was an apprentice Centre Lathe Turner at an engineering firm just down from the Sandon Lion on Regent Road, they used to make the huge rams that opened the doors on car ferries, rams for compactors, skip wagons, stuff like that, all heavy stuff. I met him in the pub a couple of dinner times, fucking hell, they used to hammer the ale and then go back to work.

When I worked as a toolmaker in Germany in the late 80's early 90's they used to have a beer vending machine on the shop floor, full of the locally brewed stuff that was 8-10% in litre bottles, and it was subsidised by the company. Lots of guys would have a couple of bottles in their lunch time    

[So… Howard Philips]

Good Friday being a non drinking day in NI was a shock to the system for me!

All of North Wales used to be dry on a Sunday.

Back in the late 60s a mate was an apprentice fitter at the Corpy Bus Depot in Edge Lane. On payday at lunchtime they'd change into clean overalls and all rush over to the Lord Dryden for as many pints they could manage and then back to fix those damned failing brakes on the Atlantean buses.

[AndyInVA]

I worked for Commercial Union in Glasgow for a few months in the early 90s. They had an old school underwriter, then in his 60s who made a fortune for the company based on his experience. He was a part of the lunchtime drinking culture of the Horseshoe bar where loads of insurance types would go. On Friday he would often over do it at lunch and be fast asleep in his chair at his desk. It was an open plan office of at least 50 people and to see this guy asleep on fridays was just normal at the time.

[Kenny's Jacket]

All of North Wales used to be dry on a Sunday.

When was that HP.I went to Bangor Uni and they had weird Sunday hours, but thats as bad as I remember

[Charlie Adams fried egg]

I worked for Commercial Union in Glasgow for a few months in the early 90s. They had an old school underwriter, then in his 60s who made a fortune for the company based on his experience. He was a part of the lunchtime drinking culture of the Horseshoe bar where loads of insurance types would go. On Friday he would often over do it at lunch and be fast asleep in his chair at his desk. It was an open plan office of at least 50 people and to see this guy asleep on fridays was just normal at the time.

An old mate used to work for CU. he may have been an underwriter but not sure
Someone in their office was always in at 8, then at 1 he was off for a few pints, back usually 2.30-3 then away by 4. Train home and in his local until about 7 or 8. They let him get on with it because between 8 & 1 he shifted more work than most people did in not just one day, often 2.

You're right though, there used to be bars that were meeting places for certain sectors, still are, but usually after work at the end of the week instead of all day every day.

It's really interesting to see how every day drinking used to be embedded in so many industries. I'm just pleased we haven't had any airline pilots posting about the good old days. then again we've had public transport and electricians...

[Elmo!]

All of North Wales used to be dry on a Sunday.

Back in the late 60s a mate was an apprentice fitter at the Corpy Bus Depot in Edge Lane. On payday at lunchtime they'd change into clean overalls and all rush over to the Lord Dryden for as many pints they could manage and then back to fix those damned failing brakes on the Atlantean buses.

Places in the Western Isles (Lewis particularly) still frown upon any sort of activity or business opening on a Sunday at all. It is changing but very slowly.

[rob1966]

As someone mentioned earlier in the thread, I am old enough to remember when pubs closed at 3pm. Someone at the Hotel managed to find this place called the nurses club? in Southport that served beyond 3pm, so that became a regular haunt between shifts. Before that it was in the pub at 2pm, 4 pints before closing, home for tea then back to work.

Our day was basically - I'd go to Safeway at 8am and pick up a case of small bottles of beer, Mousel was one we drank, which we would drink in the kitchen, then once the bars opened at 11am we'd get a couple off the bar staff in exchange for steaks, then pub, then back to work, another few off the bar staff, then finish at half 10 and neck as many as I could in 30 minutes, usually 3 or 4 pints.

I was 12 st when I started working there and 17st when I left 12 months later.

[Ziltoid]

Right I'm off to the works local for a pint - got me in the mood this thread.

Be on my own like as only 2 of us in the office.

[Charlie Adams fried egg]

As someone mentioned earlier in the thread, I am old enough to remember when pubs closed at 3pm. Someone at the Hotel managed to find this place called the nurses club? in Southport that served beyond 3pm, so that became a regular haunt between shifts. Before that it was in the pub at 2pm, 4 pints before closing, home for tea then back to work.

Our day was basically - I'd go to Safeway at 8am and pick up a case of small bottles of beer, Mousel was one we drank, which we would drink in the kitchen, then once the bars opened at 11am we'd get a couple off the bar staff in exchange for steaks, then pub, then back to work, another few off the bar staff, then finish at half 10 and neck as many as I could in 30 minutes, usually 3 or 4 pints.

I was 12 st when I started working there and 17st when I left 12 months later.

Did you once say you worked in the 'Brick Rob or have I get that wrong? Anyway.
This is sort of workplace but it involved some of the Everton players in the mid 80's when they were good, but a team of pissheads.
Apparently a few of them would often have a drink in the Baron's bar of the Brick which had a couple of exits, so at 3, it'd be "I'm off now, see you at training tomorrow etc." All leaving in ones and twos as if going home.

All for show and the benefit of the rest of the punters as they used to then meet up at an all afternoon drinking club. Not sure which one.

[AlphaDelta]

This thread has got me remembering some boss times..... some shady too!

I used to practically live in The Exchange Bar on Old Hall Street until it closed. It was a decent civil service boozer as most of our work used it morning noon and night. One evening after work I went in with my mates and immediately was struck by a really tense atmosphere in there which was unheard of. It was noted the barstaff were moping the floor and saying to the customers, 'I'm really sorry about that, are you ok', etc.
Clearly something had gone on in the pub before we arrived.

The next day in work I noticed one of the older fellas, a mild-mannered, easy going fella, sporting a whopper of a black eye. Now this fella was a creature of habit. His wife worked on a different floor in our building and every night he would meet her in the pub, have a drink or two together then get the train home. He would come in an hour early, get his pint and sit reading the paper.

I said to him, "what happened to you?", and he mumbled some story about walking into a door. It was only when I got back the pub after work did the whole tale come out.

Our man was sat in his usual seat, drinking his pint, minding his own business. Now because the Exchange was below ground partially, if you sat on one of the seats, your head would be level with the pavement. This guys missus comes along and gives him a friendly tap on the window and a wave. Unfortunately, one of the staff from another office, who was sat on the next table said, "fookin hell mate I don't fancy yours much".
Our man then turned from mild-mannered civil servant into Angry Anderson and launched his pint glass at the other guy, sparking an almighty, Royal Rumble-style, punch up! Chairs, tables of ale went flying, both were rolling around on the floor, all blood and snot!

In our humble opinion both of them were in the wrong. Firstly, you should never insult a mans wife, especially if you don't even known them. Secondly, throwing a pint glass is a shithouse trick as some innocent person could have been blinded.

This story happened around 2014 and is still mentioned today.

[rob1966]

Did you once say you worked in the 'Brick Rob or have I get that wrong? Anyway.
This is sort of workplace but it involved some of the Everton players in the mid 80's when they were good, but a team of pissheads.
Apparently a few of them would often have a drink in the Baron's bar of the Brick which had a couple of exits, so at 3, it'd be "I'm off now, see you at training tomorrow etc." All leaving in ones and twos as if going home.

All for show and the benefit of the rest of the punters as they used to then meet up at an all afternoon drinking club. Not sure which one.

Royal Clifton, but used to drink in Barons bar quite a lot.