This has sparked fears that absenteeism could reach record levels. The TUC has urged bosses not to 'score an own goal' during the World Cup and to allow staff who wish to watch televised games to do so, either away from work or, if appropriate, somewhere on the company's premises.

According to the Kellogg's research, a fifth of workers are considering taking time off to watch the football or recover from the night before, but only one in 20 workers said they were happy to use their own holidays to do so.

Rather than showing staff the red card for throwing 'sickies' in order to watch the football from South Africa, the TUC believes that this is a perfect opportunity for employers to introduce working flexible hours.

The TUC believes that flexible working has real benefits for businesses and also for their workforces, and is calling on those employers yet to embrace greater flexibility to use the World Cup as an opportunity to try it out.

The World Cup, taking place between Friday 11 June and Sunday 11 July, has televised games kicking off at various times, with some matches starting at 12.30pm UK time.

Employers should also bear in mind that one in five UK employees work outside core-hours, many of whom will also want to watch the World Cup, as well as UK-based workers of different nationalities who want to watch their home team.

Employers have two options. Be flexible or be hard. If hard then you could face dealing with absenteeism, disciplinary issues and a heavily demotivated staff. You as the employer want to maintain productivity and sustain health and safety within the workplace. People are likely to drink more alcohol at this time - recognise the risks:

• intoxicated or hung-over employees can be disruptive and unproductive at work, cause accidents and upset others;
• care for employees – if an employee appears to be intoxicated, employers have a duty of care to that employee as well as all other staff and can ask the person to go home. Any incident should be investigated thoroughly to address safety issues and potential underlying reasons for the behaviour;
• know the limits – in some industries, alcohol can put lives at risk, such as drivers and operators of machinery.

Consult your workforce and protect your business.

Information for this story was provided by NatWest Mentor which provides over 14,500 UK businesses with advice, guidance and protection in the fields of Employment Law, Health & Safety, Environment and Tax. To find out more about how Mentor could benefit your business please call 0800 634 7002 or e-mail info@mentor.uk.com or visit the Mentor website at www.natwestmentor.co.uk