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Drug Testing

Drug Testing. Team 9 Pavan, Brad, Ken, Steve, Maggie & Katie. How Long Can Drugs Stay in Your Body?. Current Uses. Last year the American Drug-Testing industry conducted between 20 and 25 million tests and had revenues over $737 million.

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Drug Testing

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  1. Drug Testing Team 9 Pavan, Brad, Ken, Steve, Maggie & Katie

  2. How Long Can Drugs Stay in Your Body?

  3. Current Uses • Last year the American Drug-Testing industry conducted between 20 and 25 million tests and had revenues over $737 million. • According to the latest survey conducted by the American Management Association, 61% of companies require some form of drug test for job applicants. • Most employers consider these tests to be “conditions of employment.”

  4. Current Uses When considering a drug testing program, the first question to ask is, "Am I required to drug test some or all of my employees?" If not, then ask, "Are there other reasons I should consider drug testing?" Below are some of the most frequent reasons employers give for having a drug testing program: • To comply with Federal regulations, e.g., the Department of Transportation, Department of Defense, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and Department of Energy • To comply with customer or contract requirements • To comply with insurance carrier requirements • To match other employer efforts, and to minimize the chance of hiring employees who may be users or abusers • To reinforce the company position on "no drug use“ • To identify current users and abusers and refer them for assistance • To establish grounds for discipline or firing • To improve safety • To convince "casual users" that the cost of using is too high • To deter "recreational" drug use that could lead to addiction • To reduce the costs of alcohol and other drug abuse in the workplace • To give recovering users another reason to stay sober (relapse prevention)

  5. Current Uses • Every 6 months the Drug Testing Index is released by Quest Diagnostics Inc. and it summarizes the results of workplace drug tests as a service for the government, the media, and the industry. • It uses three major testing populations: 1) Federally mandated, safety sensitive workers: pilots, truck and bus drivers, etc 2) General Workforce 3) Combined US workforce

  6. Drug Testing Process (Using D.O.T.) • Notification • Why? • Report to the collection site • Urine collection • a.k.a. “urinalysis” • Lab testing • Chain of custody • Medical review • Employee’s rights • Verified results

  7. What are they looking for? • Marijuana metabolites /THC • Cocaine metabolites • Amphetamines • (including methamphetamine) • Opiates • (including codeine, heroin, morphine) • Phencyclidine (PCP)

  8. How do substances affect workers? • Overview: • Worked for three or more employers. • Voluntarily left company in past year. • Skipped one or more days of work in the past month.

  9. Effects in the Workforce • Most alcohol-related problems are light and moderate drinkers. • Hangovers cause • Cardiac, neurological, and psychiatric problems that cost business $148 billion per year. • Absenteeism and poor job performance. • Reduced cognitive abilities and psychiatric disorder.

  10. Second-hand Effects of Alcohol • 1 in 5 workers reported being injured. • Having to cover for a co-worker. • Having to work harder to compensate for co-workers inability to function. • When approached about alcohol abuse. • 75% = Denial • 42% = Anger

  11. The Positives of Drug Testing • US Postal Service Drug Testing Study • Involuntary Turnover • Absenteeism • Disciplinary Actions • Confidence in Testing

  12. US Postal Service • Federal Government Sponsored • 5,465 applicants • 4,375 applicants who were hired • 395 tested positive for drugs • Followed for 3.3 years divided into • 1.3, 2.4, and 3.3 year markers • Management was blind to the drug test results

  13. Involuntary Turnover • 1.3 year mark • 15% of the test-positive group was terminated • 47% higher rate than test-negative group • 2.4 year mark • 69% higher rate than test-negative group • 3.3 year mark • 77.4 % higher rate than test negative group

  14. Absenteeism • The Test-Positive Group • 1.3 year mark • 59.4% more likely to be heavy users of leave • 2.4 year mark • Absent almost 10% of total work hours scheduled • 3.3 mark • Absent almost 11% of total work hours scheduled

  15. Disciplinary Actions • The Positive Test Group • Faced disciplinary action more often than test negative group • 3.3 year mark • 37% positive test group had been disciplined • 19% negative test group had been disciplined

  16. Costs to Business • Postal Service Study • Approximate savings if they had not hired the known drug users in 1987 • $52 million by 1989 • $105 million by 1991

  17. Confidence in Testing • Lab accreditation • Federal Drug Screening Program • On-site inspection every 6 months • Proficiency testing 3 times a year • 1 false positive result = loss of accreditation

  18. Drug Testing… A Bad Investment

  19. Rampant Use • Los Angeles Times reported on December 15th. Most large employers -- 70%, according to the American Management Association -- test a candidate when they are ready to make a job offer. • Is the wide usage and reliance justified?

  20. Drug Testing Being Scrutinized • American Civil Liberties Union presents an analysis of ten years of research and empirical evidence on drug use among workers, its impact on work performance, and whether drug testing is an effective tool for identifying drug abusers in the workplace. 

  21. ACLU’s Research Findings • A recent survey of 63 Silicon Valley companies found that drug testing reduces, rather than enhances, worker productivity.       • The moderate use of illicit drugs by workers during off-duty hours is no more likely than moderate off-duty alcohol use to compromise workplace safety. • Based on results from the federal government's drug testing program, a study estimated that it costs $77,000 to find one drug user.    

  22. ACLU’s Research Findings • "Lost productivity” studies claiming that drug users cost businesses up to $100 billion each year are based on vague comparisons of household drug use and income, with no analysis of actual productivity data.       • "Junk science" fueled the growth of drug testing through the drug industry's promotion of unsubstantiated claims and phantom research. 

  23. Additional Studies: Adverse Findings • Lower Productivity With Drug Testing… • A report, by two economics professors at Le Moyne College in Syracuse, New York, found that firms with drug testing programs had lower levels of productivity than those that do not do drug testing. • America Management Association (AMA) • "Most employers never measure whether a drug testing program is working," said Eric Greenberg, director of research for the American Management Association. He noted that a drug test does not necessarily predict whether the employee will use drugs on the job. "What you're really testing," he said, "is whether someone is smart enough and strong enough to stay clean while they are conducting a job search."

  24. Huge Expense • $12,000,000 • The cost of drug testing for 38 Federal Agencies in 1996 • $14,000,000 • Amount spent by the struggling aviation industry on drug testing • Unknown Litigation Expenses

  25. The Whizzinator • The Whizzinator, an easy-to-conceal, simple-to-use device with a realistic prosthetic penis, comes complete with an adjustable belt, a 4-ounce vinyl bag, dehydrated toxin-free urine and organic heat pads—all for only $149.95. • Why would HR professionals need to know about this contraption? • Because The Whizzinator, made by Puck Technologies of Signal Hill, Calif., is only one of a swarm of products that aims to help employees—both male and female—beat your company’s drug tests. • Other items available on the internet include products that potential test cheaters ingest or drop into specimen cups. There is even “clean” urine for sale that drug abusers can substitute for their own. • The existence of these products is bad news for employers, who fork over considerable sums of money each year to test their employees.

  26. Questions?

  27. References • AVITAR On Site Diagnostics • http://www.avitarinc.com/Resources/FAQs.cfm • Employee handbook • www.dot.gov/ost/dapc • The Vaults of Erowid • http://www.erowid.org/psychoactives/testing/testing.shtml • Drug-Free Workplace: Office of National Drug Control Policy • http://www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/prevent/workplace/research.html • Current, William. “Cut Costs and Increase Safety with Pre-employment Drug Testing.” Occupational Hazards. 23 July 2002. 1 Nov. 2005. <http://www.occupationalhazards.com/articles/44> • Spiehler, Vina, PhD. “Drug Screening in the USA.” Bandolier.1994. 1 Nov. 2005. http://www.jr2.ox.ac.uk/bandolier/band5/b5-3.html • www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov • www.marijuanapassion.com

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