Beat back workers in sober performance (9)
I believe the answer is:
enactment
'performance' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'beat back workers in sober' is the wordplay.
'beat' becomes 'cane' (caning is a kind of beating).
'back' is a reversal indicator.
'workers' becomes 'men' (man is a kind of worker).
'in' is an insertion indicator.
'sober' becomes 'tt' (I've seen this in other clues).
'cane' back-to-front is 'enac'.
'men' put inside 'tt' is 'tment'.
'enac'+'tment'='ENACTMENT'
(Other definitions for enactment that I've seen before include "The passing of a bill into law" , "Portrayal" , "A played-out" , "Theatrical performance" , "Legal process" .)