Drug Testing in the Workplace
Employers can use drug testing as a way to identify potential employees who may be at risk for harm in the workplace. Employees who abuse drugs can be a liability for businesses, and employers can be held liable in the event of accidents and injuries that were caused by illegal substances.
There are several ways to test for drug use in the workplace, including urine drug screens and blood tests. Urine tests are less invasive and can detect the presence of most drugs, but they can produce false positive results because of drug metabolism or other factors that could cause them to show up.
Most I Drug Screen are conducted after a conditional job offer is made but before an applicant starts working. The employer can then ask the candidate to take a medical exam and answer drug-related questions based on the results of the screening.
Random drug testing can be a common practice, but it is important to be aware of local laws in your area before you implement such a program. Some states prohibit random drug testing, while others have regulations that limit the use of these types of programs.
Some employers choose to include drug testing in the hiring process, but this can be expensive and slow down the process of bringing on new workers. Other employers do not consider drug testing necessary for their business, but they can still use it to protect themselves from potential liability.
The most popular form of drug screening is the urine screen, which can detect most legal and illegal drugs. Compared to other forms of drug screening, urine drug tests are less invasive and more cost-effective.
They can also be more accurate than blood or saliva drug screens, but they are expensive and unable to determine the exact level of a substance in a person’s system. This is because the body breaks down certain medications differently, making it more difficult for urine drug screens to accurately measure their levels in your body.
If your drug test results show that you have been using a drug, it can be very important to follow up on the test with a second type of drug test known as gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). This is a more precise and reliable method for drug screening and is considered the standard of care in confirmatory testing.
GC/MS is more expensive than immunoassays, but it is much better at detecting the presence of specific substances and producing accurate results. For example, GC/MS can detect opiates such as morphine or heroin, which can be very hard to pick up with an immunoassay.
Because of this, a negative result on a pre-employment drug test is usually interpreted as a warning sign that the candidate does not have a problem with alcohol or other drugs and should not be considered for employment. A positive test can be more problematic, however. In these circumstances, the employee might be referred to an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) or into treatment. Depending on the situation, employers can also decide to terminate the employee.
