Alcohol and drug abuse are seen as major causes of employee absence and lost productivity, according to a survey by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD).

According to the survey, four out of 10 employers believe drug and alcohol abuse is a significant cause of staff absence.

But only 33% of employers train managers in how to deal with this sensitive issue and only half provide access to counselling or occupational health services to help employees over come addiction.

"Simply adding a policy to a rarely used staff handbook is unlikely to ensure the issue is seen as an ongoing priority," said Ben Willmott, employee relations adviser at the CIPD and author of the report.

"Organisations should engage with their employees to ensure that they are fully aware of its provisions," he added. "This can be done via staff briefings, poster or publicity campaigns at work, internal notice boards newsletters and email alerts.

"Training managers so that they are able to identify and manage drugs and alcohol misuse in the workplace is also essential.

The survey also revealed that 22% of employers carry out alcohol or drug testing in the workplace, with another 9% planning to introduce such a system in the future.

Most companies (60%) prohibit the consumption of alcohol on the organisation's premises and 24% do so when entertaining in work time.

"Clearly drug and alcohol misuse is an issue which needs to be taken seriously within the workplace," added Willmott.

"The Health and Safety Executive currently estimates that up to 14m working days are lost each year due to alcohol related problems, costing British industry an estimated £2bn each year."