Problems of a severe kind arise in many facets of the life of those who use drugs. The workplace is the site of some of the most significant repercussions. Employees who struggle with substance abuse and addiction can significantly impact the overall performance of the business, as well as the safety and productivity of the workplace. Employers should do drug tests because of reasons like these. In this article, you will gain an understanding of the rationale behind including drug testing as part of your background screening procedure. Drug testing in the workplace involves determining whether or not present or potential employees have used illegal or prescription drugs. Since 1986, the practice of randomly testing employees for the presence of drugs has been progressively growing, which has led to a number of adverse effects, including the destruction of reputations, the loss of privacy, the infliction of emotional distress, and the termination of employment.
Many workers believe that it violates their right to privacy and is unjust that they are required to demonstrate their innocence even though they are not even suspected of engaging in illegal drug use. Employees believe that the tests are not necessary to evaluate job performance because they cannot detect whether or not an impairment exists. On the side of the employer, drug testing is an effective approach to test potential employees for drug use or to detect recent use of illicit or prescription drugs and alcohol. In addition, testing can reveal whether an employee has consumed alcohol recently. In addition to this benefit, drug testing can assist firms in attaining lower premiums for insurance policies such as worker’s compensation. It is crucial for a firm to have a clear written policy that all of its employees are aware of in order to make drug testing programs as successful as possible in the workplace. When combined with educational programs and training for supervisors, this has the potential to assist lessen the number of problems and concerns that may be associated with a company’s drug policy.
How Is Drug Testing Conducted and How Accurate Is It?
There is a lot of discretion granted to employers in deciding how a drug policy should be implemented. Companies’ drug testing programs can only be regulated by federally regulated entities like those related to the U.S. Department of Transportation. SAMHSA Mandatory Guidelines for Federal Workplace Drug Testing require federal entities conducting drug tests to have a Medical Review Officer present at all times. The most typical technique of workplace testing is a urinalysis performed at a doctor’s office or medical facility that the company has chosen. Here, a urine sample is collected from the employee under carefully monitored conditions to prevent contamination of the sample while still providing the worker with a sense of privacy.
The sample will be sent to a certified laboratory for testing in accordance with SAMHSA guidelines. There are only five primary substances and alcohol that can be tested for at these labs, despite their high accuracy rate. The employer will be informed if the test results are positive. It’s important to keep in mind that some prescription medications can have a beneficial effect, so any medication taken should be documented.
If a drug test falls under the category of personal health information, the results are typically shared with the employer, and employees are often required to sign a release. The history of a worker’s drug use, as discussed with the tester, may be subject to release restrictions due to the fact that drug testing falls under the category of protected health information.
The employer has the right to discipline or dismiss an employee if they are unable to perform their duties. As a result, the company is able to maintain both a productive and a safe working environment.
Unfortunately, drug tests can only show that an employee has used the drug, not whether or not they actually used it. It is unable to determine whether or not an employee is intoxicated or impaired, and it has no way of knowing when the last time was that an employee used drugs.
A person’s recent drug use can be inaccurately depicted if he or she tests positive for a drug for weeks after the last time he or she used it. This means that an employee could smoke pot on the weekend, or even weeks before they started working, and still come up positive for drug use on their drug screen. The test would be positive in this case even though it would have no effect on the worker’s ability to do their job.
When it comes to drug testing, it is possible for an employee to use cocaine the morning of a test and still come up negative because the drug hasn’t had enough time to metabolize and become present in the urine.
Drug testing for employees is not prohibited by federal law, and in most cases it is permitted. Before drafting and implementing a drug testing program, employers should verify that they are in compliance with all applicable state laws.
There are laws in place to protect job applicants and employees who have a history of drug or alcohol abuse or addiction, for example.