Impart drug screening tests in Employee selection

Do people know that 77% or drug users are employed? According to National Institute on Drug Abuse, this fact is true for many situations. This means there are a lot of drug users out there and they could be hiring one of them. Drug use in workplace can contribute to job injuries, violence, accidents on job and absenteeism. More and more employers are including drug screening as part of their -employment/background screening process to ensure that they do not hire an individual with a drug problem.

When deciding on making drug screening a part of employment screening process. Certain employers are required to drug screen applicants and employees, however many are not. Take a look at the job they are hiring. Will a person be working with children or elderly have access to prescription medications, operating a company vehicle or heavy machinery? In any of these cases it would be advisable to conduct a drug screen on both applicants and current employees

Should they decide on implementing a drug screening tests, they will need to decide if applicants are going to be screened as part of the pre-employment screening process and/or their current employees as an ongoing random selection process. Once an employer decides on the program(s) to be implemented, then they must adhere to a universal set of rules and screen all applicants and/or all current employees equally and in the same manner. This protects them against a number of discrimination laws.

If they are implementing the new drug screening program as part of a pre-employment screening process, then it will be necessary to obtain written consent from an applicant. The background of a screening company should have a release form that they can use for this purpose. If they are implementing a post hire screening program this needs to be outlined in an employee handbook or other such documentation, making an employee fully aware they are subject to random testing throughout their employment.

The next step is to decide on what type of drug test that employer would like to administer. The most common test that is used by employers is a urine drug screen to detect defaulters. However, hair and saliva drug screens are also used in such a situation. The drug screening tests will test basic street drugs that are commonly used such as Marijuana, Opiates, Cocaine, and Amphetamines. This tool will help detect at least 5 drugs in addition to some common prescription medications. Determining which test to administer is up to the company that is using this technique to protect their investments. Again, take a look at the position available within the company is trying to hiring for. If they are hiring a nurse working in a nursing home with access to many prescription medications, it would be advisable to use 10 Panel Drug Test.