Background:

Construction industry apprentices, largely young men aged 15-25, are a vulnerable group. As they transition from adolescence to adulthood and from school to work, they are exposed to a number of 'stressors' that place them at high risk of alcohol-related harms.

Methods:

Data were gathered in Victoria, Australia from 108 carpentry and plumbing apprentices (predominantly 15-25 years of age) through a paper and pencil survey, handed out during preventive education session in apprentices’ trade training colleges. Participation in the study was voluntary and anonymous, and consent to participate was implied by return of the completed survey.

Results/Discussions:

This paper reports on the prevalence of harmful alcohol use in a sample of male Australian construction industry apprentices, and also discusses alcohol-related harms. Findings indicate that approximately two thirds (65.7%) of apprentices had an AUDIT (Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test) score over 8, which place them in a ‘harmful’ alcohol consumption category. There was a positive correlation between ‘harmful’ alcohol consumption and numerous alcohol-related harms. Thus, what is clear is that the greater apprentices’ score on the AUDIT test (which measures their harmful alcohol consumption practices), the more likely it is that they will experience alcohol related harms, including missing classes, drink driving, risky sex, memory loss, poor physical health, expressing verbal, physical and racial abuse, physical injuries, property damage, poly-substance use, relationship difficulties, financial difficulties and dangerous behaviour.

Conclusions/implications:

We can conclude that young men in blue-collar workplace settings is a high risk group for alcohol-related harms, and as such the paper makes suggestions for implementing preventive strategies in apprentices training environments and workplaces.