In today’s competitive marketplace, every employer plans to thrive in their business and to do that, employee’s efforts mean a lot. But to make sure that the employees are not misusing prescribed, OTC drugs, illicit or illegal drugs in the workplace or in their personal lives; most employers understand the importance of drug testing in the workplace.

However, many employers try to save money and cut corners by conducting drug screenings by the “Do-It-Yourself (DIY)” method to control the drug usage and impairment problems. Unfortunately, most employers don’t realize that “Instant Drug Screens” or “Dip Sticks” do not yield conclusive drug test results and are not nearly as accurate as lab-based drug testing. Not only that, but if disciplinary measures are taken based on inconclusive instant drug screens, the employer will be a legal risk from the employee. Not every industry requires drug screening but for many it is inevitable and highly advised. Some companies have strict policies regarding drug use while others find it as a personal matter of the workers. But the implications of being liable to the risk of lawsuits are definitive in both cases. If a company does not consistently apply drug screening practices to new and existing workers, and someone by accident injures himself or other employees due to impairment caused by drug or alcohol use, the company may be challenged and sued for negligence in a court of law. Legal actions would likely result in lawsuits and costly court cases where core questions of a prosecutor or attorney will likely be, “Why didn’t you drug test your employees for drug use?” “Do you have a Company Drug Policy” or “Do you use a professional drug testing company or DIY?” Major liabilities risks exist for DIY drug screening and for no drug testing in the for workplace. These issues should be tackled very carefully and taken seriously.

Drug Screening: Who? When? and How?

It should be understood that different states have different laws for drug screening and drug testing employees. Some states might find it as intrusive to worker’s privacy while others might embrace such policies. No doubt that drug screening may not be popular in some circumstances but it is very useful in avoiding accidents, injuries and liability in the workplace caused by drug use and impairment.

The first question is related to who the drug screening should be applied to avoid lawsuits or liability. Anti-discrimination challenges might be faced by employers, if they randomly screen workers for drug tests, on discriminating certain groups of people based on their gender, salary, ethnicity, etc., if they do not have any solid proof and written policies for having a certain employees tested. It is most suitable for employers to apply drug screening/testing to either all the employees or to group-specific high-risk workers if all workers are not liable to risks.

The next question concerns when should be the employees screened. To withstand any legal lawsuits, the primary motive of the employer must be the safety of employers, customers and all other people vulnerable to the risk. In this case, certain limitations might help an employer to survive a lawsuit challenge which include; drug screening of workers who are vulnerable to high-risk jobs such as operating heavy machinery or lifting cargo, etc., the operators who have recently faced an accident or injury while operating a specific equipment, those employees who are currently taking or have recently tested positive for drugs or are on some type of return-to-work drug program, and the reasonably suspected workers for ill-legal drug use that affects their work efficiency.

The last part of the topic is how should a drug screening be applied by a company itself for the safety of the employees as well as the company. Using a professional drug testing company with trained collectors’ aides in not violating the privacy or self-respect of any employee would help the employer reduce legal liability. Other considerations include consulting a lawyer for creating a drug testing policy or keeping a written Drug Policy that addresses all the employees and the use of drugs and its implications concerning the company. The confidentiality of test results and consistency of dealing with the workers is essential to any drug testing or screening program or policy.

For help with your company drug testing, contact Test Smartly Labs today…

The United States is heavily involved in the drug crisis and the gravity of the issue can be judged from the fact that America is only 5% of the world's population but is responsible for buying over 60% of the world's supply of drugs.

And the majority of these drug users/abusers are found at American workplaces. Be it a large corporate or a small business, you will find these drug users everywhere. According to a report, 77% of the illicit drug users are either full or part-time employed.

Almost 8 out of every 10, individuals and workers are involved in consuming some form of drugs. That’s makes around 9.4 million workers to be involved in this mess. As this is a very large number, we can safely assume the major impact of employee drug abuse has on businesses. Taking drugs can decrease their work efficiency and productivity which will greatly affect the business or company profitability. Employees also suffer from illnesses and lose valuable time at work and in worst cases people can die due to overdose or accidents. Unfortunately, this will affect their payouts on insurance claims for their family.

Employees also stop appearing on their jobs calling for ‘sick days’ more frequently. At times, they don’t bother to make an excuse or go back to work. In addition, when they do appear at their workplace, they become more involved in accidents in the workplace. They become involved in workplace property damage and theft. Moreover, they will be also late on deadlines and the work they submit will be either inaccurate or unprofessional.

How workplace should handle drug abuse problems?

Since the cases of employee drug abuse are increasing day by day, workplace management is now taking certain measures against this problem. They are introducing company-wide anti-drug policies; comprehensive employee drug abuse education and drug awareness programs; drug testing programs; employee assistance (EAP) and rehabilitation programs.

Is drug testing accurate?

Yes, when done properly. The procedure of drug testing involves a few steps. In the first step, generally the person’s urine is tested. The typical procedure is a two-step process in which one half of urine sample is tested using a relatively simple, inexpensive, yet highly accurate "screen" (usually an “immunoassay”). If the screen shows the negative result, it usually means that person appeared negative against the drugs being tested for which further means that they are not consuming it. If the screen shows the non-negative result, then a second test will be performed at a diagnostic lab for confirmation of the substance in question. Upon the confirmation findings, a Medical Review Officer (MRO) will contact the donor directly to obtain any prescription medications that he or she is taking. Once the entire analysis is done and the result is positive, this means that a person is consuming drugs. If done properly, this test is very accurate. It is important to note that an “Instant Screen” without Lab Confirmation and an MRO review should never be considered a conclusive result and would not stand up to a legal challenge.

Can employee drug abuse affect me?

Employee drug abuse can greatly affect you. From an economic point of view, it can cause higher insurance rates higher health care costs, and higher consumer prices. Moreover, this will also generally lead to a higher crime rate. People can also get harassed at the workplace by such drug consuming employees asserting peer pressure or simply because they are impaired. If you are a CEO, Manager, or Owner of a company, your business will be greatly affected if a drug problem exists in your workplace.

Do these prevention programs work?
If the company actively participates in educating its employees regarding drug abuse, it can have a very positive impact. The people involved in drugs don’t even bother to apply such companies where they openly educate employees about drugs or have very clear and strict drug-abusing policies. If such people are already working in these companies, they might stop using them due to the fear of being caught and fired. A random drug program is recommended to keep your workplace drug-free.

There are many success stories that celebrating success or drug prevention programs. However, a particular case of the US Navy in the 1980s is very famous. Some active personnel were tested positive for drug consumption. They introduced a very thorough drug abuse prevention program due to which there was a decrease in drug abuse cases. The percentage of such cases dropped from 28% to 4% which was a huge success.

For help understanding all of the drug screening/testing options available, please contact Test Smartly Labs today…

Whether you’re a parent searching for truthful answers or a caseworker, social worker or professional working with juveniles – Test Smartly Labs can help. We have experience in testing teens for drug and alcohol use and can help you get to the bottom of things – quickly.

Teenage drug and alcohol use is not a new problem; for decades America has struggled to keep its young generations off of drugs and out of the liquor cabinets. And while many strides have been made to reduce illegal drug and tobacco use, issues still remain amongst many adolescents and college students.

How Common Is Teenage Drug Use Today?

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) has monitored adolescents and college students since 1975 and publishes a yearly survey called “Monitoring the Future” which illuminates teenage drug use.

In the 2016 survey, it found:

- “The percentages of students seeing great risk of smoking marijuana regularly is at or near the lowest point ever recorded in the study—58%, 44%, and 31% in grades 8, 10, and 12, respectively.”
- “Young people are less concerned about the dangers of using prescription drugs outside of medical regimen because they are widely used for legitimate purposes.”
- “The use of so-called “bath salts” (synthetic stimulant cathinones) rose significantly (but just by 0.5% to 0.9%) among 8th graders in 2016. Similarly, cough and cold medicines used to get high (which usually contain dextromethorphan) rose significantly among 8th graders to an annual prevalence of 2.6%”
- “Alcohol remains the substance most widely used by today’s teenagers.”

What’s especially concerning is the introduction of “new” drugs like synthetic drugs and bath salts (which are way more toxic), and the rise of teenagers also abusing prescription drugs. With every new advancement in the variety of drugs, every testing center across the world is forced to become even more versatile in its service offering.

The reason we are able to provide the kind of trustworthy test results every employer or parent deserves is because we do everything we can to remain informed on every front. As each new popular drug reveals itself, we analyze it and break down the best methods to trace it in the body.

For advice on how to proceed and to learn your options, contact us today.