Survey Finds Most American Workers Believe That Drinking Alcohol Is

Wednesday, March 7th 2001, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

SADDLE BROOK, N.J., -- The three-martini lunches are a thing of the past according to a recent nationwide telephone survey conducted for AOC by Opinion Research Corporation. When asked if drinking alcoholic beverages at a business lunch was acceptable, 77% of those surveyed
say no. Only 21% say having a cocktail at a business lunch is acceptable,
leaving only 2% who did not answer.

Enjoying a drink at dinner is another story altogether. Almost two-thirds of the respondents surveyed say alcoholic beverages at a business dinner are acceptable (63%) while 35% state that alcohol is still unacceptable even at dinner and 2% didn't know or had no answer.

This survey, which asked American workers if they thought drinking during a business lunch or a business dinner was acceptable, is part of AOC's ongoing "Profiles of the American Worker(R)" series which summarizes the opinions, attitudes, and behavior of employed Americans concerning workplace issues.

For this survey, full and part-time workers were asked the following:

"Overall, do you think it is acceptable or unacceptable to drink alcoholic beverages during a business lunch?" "And in general, do you think it is acceptable or unacceptable to drink alcoholic beverages during a business dinner?"

What are the Schools Teaching?

Seventy-four percent of college graduates think it is all right to drink alcohol during a business dinner, whereas 57% of non-college grads think it is acceptable and only 47% of those without a high school diploma think that alcohol at a business dinner is okay.

While a dinner cocktail is clearly an acceptable practice among college graduates, only 26% of those surveyed, who graduated college, also favor an alcoholic beverage at lunch. Among survey participants who have some or no college education, a drink at lunch is simply unacceptable-81% answer in the negative.

Toasting the Difference by the Mason Dixon Line

Those living in the South are more likely than those in the Northeast to disapprove of an alcoholic drink at either a business lunch or a business dinner. Seventy-nine percent of those living in the South find a drink unacceptable at lunch compared with 72% in the Northeast. Seventy percent of those living in the Northeast think that drinking an alcoholic beverage at dinner is acceptable, whereas only 59% of those in the South approve of this practice.

This survey is based upon telephone interviews with a representative sample of more than 1331 adults, 18 years of age and older, who are employed either full or part time. Interviews were conducted by Opinion Research Corporation's Caravan between February 22, 2001 to February 26, 2001. The margin of sampling error associated with this survey is plus or minus three percentage points.

With more than 120 offices worldwide, AOC is currently a world leader in the placement of temporary and direct-hire accounting and financial personnel.

For complete survey findings or more information, contact Samantha Cummis,
Public Relations Department, AOC, Park 80 West, Plaza II, Ninth Floor, Saddle Brook, NJ 07663; 201-843-0006 ext. 290. Web site: http://www.aocnet.com/