Workplace Drug Testing - Substance Misuse Testing of Employees

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by: baramikonti
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Date: Wed, 2 Feb 2011 Time: 4:27 PM
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Workplace Drug Testing
Substance misuse testing of employees in the workplace is an effective method of reducing the risks associated with alcohol and drug misuse.
There is a significant body of evidence showing links between absenteeism and substance misuse, including a survey conducted by London Chamber of Commerce showing 12m working days having been lost due to alcohol misuse alone.
Many safety critical industries including transport, rail, power and petro chemical industries insist on all employees, sub contractors and agency workers being tested in advance of being allowed on site.
There are a number of options available to employers when introducing drug testing.
1. Pre-employment workplace drug testing
Pre-employment drug testing provides companies with the advantage of detecting any drug use by applicants prior to engagement, potentially making significant savings in future absenteeism and avoiding workplace accidents. The process is widely used and is ideal for recruitment campaigns particularly for seasonal/ temporary workers.
There are few legal implications as long as the process is undertaken fairly in accordance with equal opportunities. The employer simply books the drug testing agency to attend at the recruitment locations where on-site tests can be carried out alongside other health checks.
2. Post-incident drug testing
Post-incident drug testing is a popular drug testing option used by employers in the UK. A drug and alcohol test is undertaken after an accident (or other incident). The least contentious options that allows employers to link 'cause and effect' limiting the company's subsequent potential liabilities. Using modern Drugalyser? or Orascan? technology is the most effective way of proving an employee is 'under the influence' at the time of the incident.
3. Random workplace drug testing
Random workplace drug testing is a very effective deterrent and is recommended for safety critical industries. These tests are implemented by randomly selecting members of staff at pre-arranged times and dates only known to management and the testers. Established workplace drug testing companies such as Modern Health Systems Ltd have long standing protocols for selecting numbers and arranging collections by trained staff that can attend at the client's premises and undertake the tests.
4. Testing for 'Cause'
This option is similar to post incident testing, in other words there is a rationale of 'grounds of suspicion' that enables the employer to act on a potential breach of the Company Policy. Generally speaking the 'cause' is usually related to grounds of suspicion such as smelling alcohol on the breath or slurred speech or other suspicious behaviour. Ideally these will have been listed within the workplace drug and alcohol policy document and managers will have received specialist training in how to identify such behaviour. Alternatively employers may suspect that substance misuse is responsible for patterns of absenteeism.
The employee will then be required to submit to an agreed workplace drug tests and/or alcohol test.
5. Return to work
Many workplace drug policies include the option to test employees on their return to work following a period of sickness or absenteeism. There is evidence that 'puling a sicky' is often related to substance misuse hangovers.

About the Author

For Workplace Drug Testing and other Drug Test Services visit www.ModernHealthSystems.com