- What are the justifications for workplace drug testing?
For a long time, drug use has been a common problem at the work place in the United States of America. This was not until 1982 when the first random drug test was carried out at the work place. This set the ball rolling for the institutionalization of workplace drug testing. The justifications for workplace drug testing were informed by the accidents at the workplace that were attributable to drug use and abuse. For instance, the first random test for drugs at the work place was in the United States Navy. This was a result of an accident that occurs on the USS Nimitz. It was discovered that there was a widespread use of drugs.
Four years later, the then president issued executive orders that required all agencies of the federal government to establish programs for testing the use of illegal drugs by those employees working in sensitive positions. Other accidents at the workplace also justified drug testing at the workplace. For instance, in 1987 a Conrail engineer rammed his locomotive onto an oncoming high speed train causing the death of sixteen people and scores of others injured. The engineering was inebriated with marijuana.
Exon Valdez which was a large oil tanker hit a rock formation and caused oil spillage in millions of gallons in 1989 causing enormous damages to the social fabric and the economy. Alcohol use was partly attributed to for the disaster. These accidents necessitated the Omnibus Transportation Employee Testing Act of 1991 that required all employees in safety sensitive transportation duties to be tested for alcohol and drug use.
- How does drug testing affect employees' civil rights?
Civil rights is a class of rights that serve to protect and preserve the freedom of individuals from infringement by private organizations and governments. Drug testing has an effect on employees civil rights. Firstly, many tests used in drug testing are intrusive and at times are an invasion of privacy. During testing, it is important to avoid false positives based on other drugs that may be present in the urine sample. In order to avoid this, employees are required list of the drugs that they may have consumed in a period of thirty days, including over-the-counter and prescription drugs.
This delves into their off-duty and private lives in addition to their medical histories. Chemical analysis of blood and urine samples can also reveal medical conditions like epilepsy, pregnancy, diabetes and clinical depression. Drug tests also violate civil rights by breaking the ethical standards of fair treatment. Drug testing serves as a dragnet where many people are tested for every used detected. This implies that every employee is presumed guilty and has to work towards proving their innocence (MacDonald & Roman 100).
This goes against the premise that every individual is presumed innocent until investigations prove otherwise. Indiscriminate testing of employees who have not provide cause or are in critical safety-related positions seems a greater evil that the use of drugs. This notwithstanding, drug testing at the workplace has been institutionalized by the law and is not about to be stopped. Additionally, the federal government requires that any private organizations that want government contracts must test their employees periodically for drugs use as a requirement for consideration for the contracts.
- What classes of current and prospective employees should be tested? When and how often?
Under the provisions of employee testing programs, the following classes of current and employees should be tested. Firstly, employees working in safety-sensitive positions should be tested. These include people who might potentially endanger their safety or that of the general public. This class also includes employees who bear firearms or carry large amounts of money. The other class of employees who should be tested is those that provide cause.
This refers to employees who frequently display erratic behavior, have frequent accidents, those who abscond their duties and show inconsistent performance at work. Employees who have undergone rehabilitation should be tested for drugs periodically. Additionally, those employees applying for employment, more so those seeking employment in safety sensitive areas should be tested for drugs. Finally, random testing should be done for all employees so that any employees using drugs find it hard to escape detection.
Those employees who provide cause should be tested for drugs immediately so that the propensity for injury to themselves and others can be reduced. In the same respect, employees seeking employment should be tested immediately. This is in order to determine their status before they are offered any positions. In addition to this, periodic and random testing of employees should be done (Verstraete 15).
Testing should be done for as long as it is deemed necessary. For instance, employees who transport large sums of money should be tested periodically for as long as they are responsible for transporting money. Random testing for all employees should also be sustained for the length of the organization so that it is embedded into the organizational culture. This makes it impossible for employees to use drugs while at work.
Works cited
MacDonald, S.; Roman, P. Drug Testing in the Workplace. Springer Verlag, 2013. Print.
Verstraete, Alain G. Workplace Drug Testing. London: Pharmaceutical Press, 2011. Print.
