Drug Testing In The Workplace Essay

Carrell & Heavrin (2013) mention that the use of drug and alcohol tests for employees and job applicants have become a complicated and critical issue in regards to job security. In general, drug test screenings look for opiates, cocaine, barbiturates, methamphetamine, and marijuana. It has also been suggested that drug abusers are ten times likely to miss work, 3.6 times more likely to be involved in on-the-job related accidents, five times likely to file a workers compensation claim and have higher health costs (Carrell & Heavrin, 2013). However, illegal drug use continues to be a concern in the workplace in spite of testing more regularly by the union and employer It is also estimated by the United States Department of Labor that substance abuse costs American businesses over 100 billion per year and that the industry with the highest rate of substance abuse is the construction industry (Carrell & Heavrin,
The tests typically are pre-employment testing, reasonable suspicion testing, routine fitness testing, post-accident testing, random, and follow-up testing (Carrell & Hearvin, 2013). To effectively give an employee or applicant a drug test, the person will relieve a letter from the employer that states the time, date, and location of the test. On the day of the test, the employee will have to provide a sample of their urine or hair at the workplace or clinic (Carrell & Hearvin, 2013). Once this step is complete, the sample is collected and then sent to a laboratory, in which a chain of custody form is used to ensure that the sample is not tampered with. The test results are then reported to a medical review officer, in which they interpret and evaluate an individual's positive results as it relates to the workers’ medical history (Carrell & Hearvin, 2013). If the results are positive, the employee will have to have a confirmation test, which will be sent to the