Guys,
The unions in the Bundesrepublik Deutschland demand the bier breaks in their worker's contracts. The standard is 1 at mid-morning, 2 at lunch, and 1 at mid-afternoon, often provided by their employers under the terms of their union contracts. I found this out as the ACSCMO for Deutschland and Luxembourg when dealing with CSG (Civilian Support Groups for our POMCUS sites) contract issues and a US 3 Star who wanted it stopped. Guess who lost that battle?
On a lighter note,

alcoholism remains a major issue for German industry with many companies having to staff at 10-25% higher because of its effects to ensure the quantity of workers necessary for daily operations. And try to fire a worker with a drinking problem.
Richard