Every January, Alcohol Concern runs a national campaign to encourage as many people as possible to go alcohol-free for 31 days. There are many benefits to ditching the booze and throughout the month, we'll be looking at these and helping you to encourage your employees to get involved.
Taking part in this campaign gives your employees the chance to save money (on average, we spend £50,000 on alcohol in our lifetime!), lose weight, sleep better and feel happier simply by ditching the booze for a month.
Why run Dry January in the workplace?There are many benefits to supporting Dry January in the workplace. Employees will have more energy, which helps them to perform well. Employers who support the campaign see a reduction in absenteeism and lost productivity from alcohol (estimated to cost business £7.3billion per year). Creating social ties between employees that aren't solely based on drinking can bring teams, departments and companies together, increasing the 'community' feeling in the workplace. And to top it all off and do more good, you can raise money for Alcohol Concern.
Why sign up, can't we just go it alone?Employees who sign up to the campaign are more likely to stay dry for the entire month, so encourage them to head on over to the official Dry January website and sign up today. They'll have access to a free app which features a calorie calculator, unit tracker and s savings calculator. They'll also receive regular emails with tips and information from experts to help them along the way.
Some ideas to help you along the way
- Make a 'pledge wall'. All you need is an empty wall in the office, ask everyone taking part to write their name on the wall and gather as many names as possible!
- Organise a dry event for your employees/colleagues. This could be a "mocktail" party, or a tea party or if the January diet allows, a bake sale.
- Run a quiz about alcohol to raise awareness, by giving out these Dry January scratch cards.
- And lastly, tap into everyone's competitive side: set up a staff competition and reward employees who donate or raise the most for charity.
Twitter and Facebook banners are available as well as posters you can put up in break out areas. Good luck!
