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The Social Construction of Alcohol Problems in a Union's Peer Counseling Program

While the referral processes in management-based employee assistance/industrial alcoholism programs have been studied, little attention has been paid to those in union peer counseling programs. This study closes the gap by reporting ethnographic data collected in one union's member assistance program. The Tunnel and Construction Workers Union is an occupational community characterized by a heavy drinking culture, and its program consists of credentialed alcoholism counselors and a network of union members who also belong to Alcoholics Anonymous. In negotiations with these groups, drinkers learn that they are alcoholic and achieve sobriety. Negotiations break down into three stages: Getting into the Network, Learning to Stay in the Network, and Taking Responsibility. As in management-based programs, constructive confrontation and job performance are crucial elements in the negotiations. In unions, however, those elements take on a slightly different meaning because unions operate within a different social context than management-dominated work organizations.