Examining work-related suicide risk factors among food and beverage service industry workers

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Food and beverage [F&B] service industry workers (i.e., cooks, servers, and bartenders) have significantly higher suicide rates than average in all industries combined. However, there is a lack of research in the U.S. examining the impact of the F&B service industry work environment on their suicide risk. Thus, this study examined the degree to which occupational stressors common in this industry, including sleep disturbance, and the industry’s culture of alcohol consumption are associated with F&B service industry workers’ suicide risk. The degree to which alcohol consumption strengthens the effect of occupational stressors on suicide risk was also examined. Participants were 108 food and beverage service industry employees working in mostly restaurants/bars in a large U.S. city. Hierarchical linear regression analyses indicated that alcohol consumption (β = 0.25) most strongly predicted suicide risk after controlling for depressive symptoms. Higher levels of alcohol consumption significantly strengthened the associations between occupational stress and suicide risk and between sleep disturbance and suicide risk. Findings suggest that occupational stressors negatively impact the mental health of industry workers and harmful alcohol consumption magnifies these effects. Therefore, efforts to promote mental health awareness and suicide prevention for F&B service industry workers are imperative.