DENVER (KDVR) — As more Coloradans return to the office after spending the better part of a year-and-a-half working from home, we’re learning through a new survey many of those remote employees have been drinking on the job.

With little oversight at home, it’s turned into a big problem that has area drug and alcohol counselors concerned.

The research collected by AlcoholRehab.com surveyed 3,100 drinkers in our state over the age of 21 and discovered 17% of them admit to drinking alcohol before midday since the beginning of the pandemic.

When you take that percentage and apply it to our entire state, it equates to over 749,000 Coloradans.

They survey goes on to show 15% of Coloradans say they’re now more likely to start drinking earlier in the day and only 39% say they would be open and honest about their pre-midday drinking habits.

“Coming out of COVID, coming back to work is going to be even more stressful. We see it in so many people. They’re like, ‘okay, I thought I was going to be done day drinking, but now I’m going to have to drink to cope with being around people. This is a lot.’ So I don’t think the problem is going to get better; we may actually see it get worse,” said Sarah Zubrin, with Mile High Continuing Care in Denver.

According to the survey, 15% of Coloradans surveyed say they look forward to special occasions as an excuse to drink alcohol earlier in the day.

You can read more of the study by clicking here.