Workplace drug-test positivity reached new highs in 2020. Obviously, this is due in large part to increased substance use amongst workers in these industries.
See table below.
When looking beyond the surface of drug test positivity rates, it becomes obvious that there are many other factors at play.
So, how can workplaces go about such a renovation of their drug testing program? How do you identify problem areas? What are the costs involved? What results can you expect?
First, let's look at the pros, cons, and costs of different types of workplace drug tests. Then, we'll discuss how each can be improved based on your industry and its requirements.
According to Quest Diagnostics, marijuana positivity in the US general workforce has increased by 16% in urine testing; 35% in saliva testing, and 22% in hair testing. Since the greatest positivity increase was seen in saliva testing, a test that reveals the most recent impairment, these findings may further indicate that random drug tests are not serving as deterrents to continued cannabis use at or outside work.
If the post-accident drug test is positive, workplaces with a negative workplace culture might seize the opportunity to cease further investigation and turn a blind eye to other safety issues that could have contributed to the accident. In this case, the post-accident drug test becomes a scapegoat that permits other safety issues to continue unchecked.
The second outcome is that the post-accident drug test will come back negative and the investigation will move ahead to measure the impact of other factors. While asking whether the employee received adequate training, what the environmental conditions were like, whether the equipment needed maintenance, etc. workplaces neglect to complete a full assessment of major human factors. In this case, the negative drug test is used as a band-aid to cover up more complex causes of human impairment such as stress, fatigue, or emotional distraction. After all, having an employee re-watch a training video seems a much easier fix than than optimizing shift schedules, implementing a fatigue risk management system, or increasing mental health awareness in the workplace.
After recognizing the costs and the pros and cons associated with each of these types of drug tests, you may now consider where your workplace needs the most change. Your ability to improve how your workplace handles impairment will depend on your industry, location, your insurance provider, and existing company protocols. Talk to your legal department to get a better idea of what your company's specific restrictions regarding drug-testing are.
In the following section, we will provide a brief and general overview of industry-specific drug-testing regulations, suggest opportunities for improvement, and provide examples from real workplaces within these industries.
According to the Omnibus Transportation Employee Testing Act of 1991, safety-sensitive transportation employees in aviation, trucking, railroads, mass transit, pipelines, and other transportation industries must be drug and alcohol tested at the following times:
In addition to these requirements, a DOT-regulated industries must utilize the services of a Medical Review Office to review drug test results and to provide employees with consultation services before the test result is reported to an employer.
Since DOT-regulated industries have very little flexibility within their drug testing programs, the best way to reduce drug-test positivity in these industries would be through increased education and coaching opportunities, and the introduction of cognitive impairment testing.
Increased education and coaching would provide supervisors with the knowledge and confidence to use reasonable suspicion testing more effectively. By knowing how to identify subtle signs of impairment, supervisors can become more objective and consistent in their application of reasonable suspicion testing. Secondly, by having the confidence to use it when necessary, they can strengthen the deterrent effect of reasonable suspicion testing.
If your workplace wants to become more productive, time-efficient, and proactive in identifying and managing workplace drug impairment, real-time cognitive impairment testing can also be a very powerful tool. These tests take 60 seconds at the start of a shift and accurately reveal impairment in real-time. Although DOT-regulated industries must retain their random drug testing programs, there is no federal requirement mandating how frequently they must be used. Since cognitive impairment testing increases communication and real-time impairment awareness on-site, DOT-regulated industries that utilize cognitive impairment testing often find a reduced need for random drug testing.
A transportation company integrated cognitive impairment testing into their existing truck-based tablets currently supporting their ELD/Telematics system. The drivers take the 60-second test before taking off, and each time a driver is struggling with alertness, their dispatch manager receives a notification. They contact the driver to have an objective conversation regarding their ability to work safely.
"The platform is really well aligned with our expectations and it allows us to have the technology behind what our drivers are doing as well as compliance with DOT requirements.”
Since these industries are also strictly regulated in terms of their drug-testing requirements, the opportunities for improvement are similar to those of DOT-regulated industries. Pipeline supervisors can benefit from increased training in recognizing the signs and symptoms of impairment. Cognitive impairment testing can be utilized in addition to random drug testing to increase real-time insights, increase communication, and reduce time spent traveling to get random drug tested. Adding a 60-second cognitive impairment test can quickly improve productivity and ensure workers are reporting to work in a sober and alert state of mind.
Besides reducing the overreliance on random drug testing, cognitive impairment testing can be utilized to increase the objectivity and consistency that is required to make reasonable suspicion testing effective. A 60-second test can quickly and objectively identify workers who might be struggling, instantly notify supervisors to start a conversation, and result in a much more consistent application of reasonable suspicion testing regulations than the mere reliance on subjective and often inadequate supervisory vigilance.
A 24/7 oil and gas control room with 30 employees on 5-week rotating shifts utilizes cognitive impairment testing. Alarms are set at regular intervals throughout a shift to prompt operators to take the 60-second cognitive impairment test. This ensures that the operators remain awake and alert throughout long night shifts and that countermeasures are taken when required to stay alert. By mounting an iPad with the cognitive impairment test app on it, and taking the test during fatigue hot spots, the control room has increased visibility into fatigue and helped highlight potential problems in shift schedules. It has also increased workers' personal awareness of their cognitive well-being, empowering them to make decisions that support their alertness and giving them the feedback to take countermeasures when necessary.
In non-DOT regulated safety-sensitive industries, there is more flexibility in adjusting drug testing programs. If the business or organization has received a federal contract of $100,000 or more, or a grant of any size, "the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 requires the creation and distribution of a drug-free workplace policy. Drug testing is not explicitly required" (Concentra). However, state regulations, union requirements, and insurance agreements may have stricter requirements for your company's drug testing programs.
Beyond the obvious substance abuse problem that drug testing has not adequately addressed, these industries are also suffering from labor shortages and a lack of guidance on how to manage legalized marijuana. A successful drug testing program should be able to address these issues by improving safety without risking the viability of the business.
A couple of weeks ago, Amazon announced that they would go this route with all of their non-DOT regulated workers. Read all about it here. This approach directly tackles the labor shortage problem by instantly qualifying thousands of previously unqualified workers, including both medical and recreational marijuana users. Companies who remove THC from pre-employment screenings become more attractive to employees; in a time of severe labor shortages, the ability to attract employees can be a significant competitive advantage for business.
This option might be preferred by companies in states/countries where marijuana has already been legalized, or is about to be legalized. See map below from Disa.com:
In addition to the cost savings of removing pre-employment drug testing and wider access to quality workers, removing THC from pre-employment screenings allow workplaces to focus on safety measures that are stronger and more proactive deterrents to drug use and impairment. This is the perfect point to introduce a cognitive impairment test--employees will prefer it to invasive drug testing practices; HR and safety leaders will appreciate its proactive and comprehensive approach; your whole organization will benefit from improved safety, reduced risks, and reduced costs.
Perhaps the biggest reward of all, however, was the company's ability to retain their quality employees who consumed cannabis outside of work in a manner that did not affect their alertness and safety while at work. It widened their applicant pool and gave the company a competitive edge while many other Colorado companies continued to struggle with labor shortages aggravated by marijuana legalization.
End all random drug testing and use cognitive impairment testing instead.
As mentioned above, this approach proved extremely beneficial to a manufacturing company operating in a state where cannabis had been legalized.
Leave everything the same, add cognitive impairment testing.
For workplaces that are reluctant or unable to adjust their drug testing programs — significant improvements to safety and significant reductions in cost can be achieved by the addition of cognitive impairment testing to your existing drug testing program.
There is a very wide room for impairment between the pre-employment test and the post-accident test.
Unless your supervisors have the time to meet with every worker every day, they're unlikely to pick up on every opportunity to utilize reasonable suspicion testing. The frequency and predictability of random testing differs between workplaces, but workers who intend to get away with drug use often find a way to do it, as indicated by the Quest Diagnostics data cited above.
It's used daily, meaning it picks up on impairment that occurs after the pre-employment and before the post-accident test. Although, by using daily testing and holding workers accountable for safety every day, you'll likely find a significantly reduced need for post-accident tests:
Workplaces that utilize cognitive impairment testing have experienced reductions in TRIR ranging between 20 and 35%.
If your workplace is concerned with the costs of using both drug testing and cognitive impairment testing, consider this:
Workplaces that utilize cognitive impairment testing experience reductions in costs of accidents ranging between 15 and 55% and reductions in worker's compensation claims ranging between 25 and 75%. These savings more than justify the initial investment.
"Impairment, whether it be by drugs, alcohol, fatigue or stress, decreases the safety of the workforce." - Jenny Burke, Senior Director of Impairment Practice, National Safety Council. (SHRM)
Between all the rules, regulations, and paperwork, it's easy to forget that the entire purpose of drug testing is to improve workplace safety. It's meant to achieve this purpose by deterring drug use. With drug positivity rates reaching new highs, it's time to rethink whether drug testing is actually serving this purpose, or whether it's just a costly pat on the back that allows workplaces to overlook other dangerous and complex sources of human impairment.
As society undergoes significant changes including increased mental health issues, improved detective and predictive technologies, legalized cannabis, and labor shortages, traditional drug testing programs have come under scrutiny. Are they still the best way to manage human risk factors?
Legalized cannabis use in the distant past is no longer a pressing safety risk for many workplaces. Current intoxication is. Real-time, detective technologies are more effective in this regard.
Mental health issues, emotional distress, and fatigue are significantly greater safety risks than the possibility of a worker having smoked marijuana a month ago. Predictive, proactive, comprehensive, and communicative risk mitigation is a more effective method of combatting these complex issues than the punitive and narrow focus of traditional drug testing programs.
Of course, it's not one or the other. The greatest benefit of cognitive impairment testing is that it looks at every cause of impairment. If something is anything is affecting an employee's ability to focus and work safely and productively, the test will detect it.
Regardless of the regulations of your industry, there is always room to improve safety, productivity, and efficiency.
With cognitive impairment testing with AlertMeter®, you can overcome your safety and productivity concerns and maintain a healthy and productive workforce. Schedule a time today to get a quote for AlertMeter® and learn more about how cognitive impairment testing can be implemented into your specific workplace and industry regulations.