Green Bay officials put sober-server plan on hold

GREEN BAY, Wis. — Green Bay city officials are pulling back for now on a plan to prohibit bartenders from drinking on the job.

A Press-Gazette Media report says the plan was originally suggested by police as a way to make downtown safer and more welcoming.

But bartenders and tavern owners objected that it would interfere with the tradition of bartenders and customers drinking together.

Green Bay Alderman Mark Steuer is the chairman of the City Council Protection & Welfare Committee. He initially proposed following up on the police recommendation until he heard resistance from fellow aldermen and bartenders.

Steuer says he won’t pursue the matter for now, although he says the issue could be revisited.

John Steeno of the Brown County Tavern League said the proposal smacks of excessive government regulation.