A new study has been able to identify that the amount that Australia spends each year for paying people working overtime, so as to replace those who do not make it work due to hangovers, arrives at a whopping $453 million.

To arrive at this conclusion, the study polled 1,677 adult staff members in the year 2008 and found that one third of those had co-workers, who would indulge in over drinking on a frequent basis and 8% had to face a negative consequence because of the colleague’s drinking habit, in the preceding year.

3.5% of the staff members had to put additional hours of working, in order to compensate for their ‘hung-over’ work mates. The standard number of hours of overtime that are required to be put in by the compensating workers came at 48 hours for each year.

The study was led by researcher, Michael Livingston from the Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre. Along with his co-author, Caroline Dale from Epidemiology and Population Health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Mr. Livingston said that the amount to be borne for the overtime arrived at an estimated $453 million for each year.

The researchers said that the genuine cost would be somewhat considerably higher than what has been estimated.