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Comment by mschuster91 | Hacker News Reader

> I still see construction workers drinking a can at 6:30pm however.

At least here in Germany, this is all but gone. Our version of OSHA cracked down on that hard simply because of all the accidents that happen when you combine alcohol, a lot of intake of alcohol due to the reality of physical labor (aka, sweating) and heavy machinery.

And on top of that the police in rural areas also enforces alcohol limits these days.

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They meant a Feierabendbierchen, which is strictly required for construction workers by some DIN standard, I’m sure

Ah yes the the party end of day cute beer (I think?)

Some German compound nouns are funny.

Nah it’s just a (small) drink (Bierchen) you’re having with coworkers at the end of the working day (Feierabend). Doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a party.

At 6:30pm? It’s illegal for construction workers to drink after work?

20 years ago on a trip to Germany, I saw what I was told was a group of construction workers/laborers drinking beers in the morning before work...

That's very unusual for 20 years ago. I remember this from my childhood, 60 years ago, where this was common. But even in the 90s that had stopped almost completely.

I'm guessing you don't know many roofers. I've watched roofers crush tall boys at 6AM more times than I can count.

Roofing's a helluva job. If I was a roofer, you'd damn well believe I'd have a beer+ before work.

People seek pain management where they can get it, and alcohol isn't the worst.

You misspelled meth. Roofers do meth. Outdoor trades do uppers. Indoor trades smoke weed. Everyone smokes cigarettes. Except the electricians, they smoke pole. Everyone knows that.

Lol. I knew a lot of framers who drank (lunch) and smoked (always) pretty heavily.

Maybe we live in different parts of the country but in bavaria it’s completely fine and common to have a beer at lunch, both blue and white collar workers

My dad spent a lot of time in Spain back in the day and was a regular at a local cafe, where he'd get a coffee and a tortilla (Spanish omelette) for breakfast. The cafe was popular with construction workers too and they would order the same, only they would top it off with a shot of Carlos Tercero, the cheapest brandy.

I saw that in Rome 13 years ago. Three road workers pulling up some bricks to access a utility. One guy in the hole, two guys outside the hole, one with a tallboy beer, at 930.

I'm sure it comes with a lot of problems but there's something to be said about a relaxed society.

Oh. I can't decode American 12 hour formats, that shit is too weird and convoluted. I thought you meant at 0630 in the morning which ahsolutely used to be a thing in construction here.

Yea it’s definitely not gone in Bavaria. Plenty of people get a nice beer during lunch, construction workers and bankers alike.

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