Substance Abuse in the Workplace Laws and Regulations
Write an employee drug policy that complies with substance abuse laws
Most businesses in this country must enforce a workplace substance abuse policy. Doing so protects your company from lawsuits by an employee injured on the job because you failed to discipline another worker who had tested positive for drug abuse. It can also guarantee you don’t lose lucrative federal contracts just because you didn’t terminate employees who had violated your substance abuse policy.Substance and alcohol abuse in the workplace laws originated with the federal government and the states have followed suit. You can either access the websites of government agencies to learn more about these laws or you can pattern your policy on one that’s already being used by another organization. Whatever approach you take, follow these easy steps to comply with substance abuse in the workplace laws and regulations:
1. Know federal and state drug abuse in the workplace laws designed to promote safe working environments.
2. Get details on substance abuse in the workplace regulations from drug policies that well-known agencies are enforcing.
3. Find out how these regulations are enforced by learning about the consequences for violating employee drug abuse laws.
Base your drug policy in the workplace on federal and state laws
Your employee drug policy should comply with federal and state substance abuse in the workplace laws and regulations. If your company depends on federal contracts for its work, you'll need to comply with federal laws so that you don't lose those contracts. And if you don't do business with the federal government, you still need to enforce state laws requiring drug-free working environments so that you're not vulnerable to costly lawsuits.
Try: The Department of Labor’s website explains requirements for federal contractors under the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988. Find out what drug testing is required of transportation employers at the Department of Transportation. Get ideas on how to implement a federally-approved drug testing program from the Department of Health & Human Services. Go to New Jersey’s website to access the Executive Order requiring recipients of federal grants to comply with the Federal Drug-Free workplace Act of 1988.
Find reliable sources of substance abuse intervention laws in drug policies already in effect
Enforced by reputable agencies, these policies are reliable sources of federal laws that your state must comply with. They usually identify prohibited drug abuse activities and describe in appropriate legal terms the kind of drug testing that all employees must undergo.
Try: Read the Texas Workforce policy for ideas on the illicit drug use activities you should prohibit in your company as well as the conditions under which you should test employees for drug abuse. Get ideas on how to address substance abuse issues at work by checking out the Division of Workplace Programs’ Drug-Free Workplace Kit.
Know the consequences for violating drug free workplace policies
Knowing what happens to employees-and employers-who violate substance abuse in the workplace laws and regulations can help you understand how these laws are enforced. For example, supervisors might require that employees who have failed an initial drug screening undergo additional testing. Or, an employee may have legal recourse against an employer who required random drug testing but was not legally permitted to do so.
Try: The City of Sunnyvale outlines the steps it takes once an employee has failed the first round of drug screening. Go to Lawyers.com to find out the circumstances that must exist before you can require random testing for employees.
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