In a recent post by Fox Business, “How to Deal with the Charlie Sheen of Your Workplace”, they address the problem of addiction in the workplace. It was something we wanted to share with you.

By Kate Rogers

Do you work with a “Charlie Sheen?” Even more troubling might be, does one work for you?

The world is watching as Charlie Sheen’s career and personal lives are seeming to fall apart. His reported addiction to substance abuse and headline-grabbing bad-boy behavior may have cost him his $2-million-an-episode gig on the hit series “Two and a Half Men.” However, addiction in the workplace isn’t uncommon.

Nearly 10% of all people in the workplace have an addiction issue, according to Vanessa Sebetich, training and development specialist at Greenbriar Treatment Center. Such addictions affect every person in the office from morale to HR procedure development, and can take their toll on employers and employees alike.

“Someone like Charlie Sheen is killing himself in front of America,” Sebetich said. “But the same goes for your co-workers—you can really care about them, and watch them deteriorate and not know what to do.”

Telltale signs of such addiction issues are employees underperforming, not doing their jobs or skipping out on work altogether, according to Polly Wright, senior consultant at HR Consultants, Inc. While the extreme behavior Sheen is exhibiting is likely in the minority at workplaces across the country, Wright said employers should intervene in some cases when a worker is suffering from addiction.

“It is often through absenteeism, lost activity and low morale,” she said. “That is when the employer has the ability to step in.”

Some employers offer a workplace assistance program with counseling where a troubled employee can seek help, and this can sometimes be made mandatory by the employer, Wright said.

According to human resource experts, the most important thing for all companies to have is a drug and alcohol policy that employers and supervisors are aware of and trained on. If a fellow employee is impaired in the workplace, employees should always first alert supervisors, who will then likely take the complaint to human resources.

For the rest of the article click here.