There are many places that will require their employees to do a drug test before and even during their employment. Even if drugs like marijuana are legal in some states employees can still be punished for consuming it. But it is very important that you are aware of the rules before you perform a drug test.
Can You Require Your Employee To Take A Drug Test?
Yes, you can. If you are a state, private or federal employee you can be tested for drugs. Almost all employees who are handling classified information, work in law enforcement, health and safety, or national security are all subjects to drug testing. Even though drug testing does invade your personal privacy in some cases it is necessary to do in order to protect the safety of others and that person’s health. A lot of private companies require that their employees are tested for drugs before hiring them. By doing that they are assuring the increase of productivity, preventing any illegal activities and keeping their employees healthy and safe.
You Must Draft a Written Policy
The most important step when it comes to setting up drug testing procedures is having a written policy. Contact your legal counsel in order to develop a policy that is applied by your state laws. That way you will get to notify any potential employees before they fill out the applications and get their permission to be tested.
When Is Suspicion Reasonable?
In most states, it is allowed to test your employees if you have a reasonable suspicion that your employee is using drugs. What you would consider a reasonable suspicion is different from person to person. Some courts have set guidelines that can help to figure out if you should test your employee for drug abuse.
You Must Take the Same Disciplinary Consequences for Positive Test Results
If your employee has tested positive for an alcohol or drug test they must face disciplinary consequences. The most important thing is that you don’t favour any of your employees and have the same rules for all of them. If you favour one employee and not the other you could be facing a lawsuit for discrimination.
Do Not Invade Your Employees Privacy When Doing the Drug Test
If you are performing a urine drug test on your employees, you usually can’t watch them while they are doing it. Many courts consider that is an unreasonable invasion of privacy watching your employees urinate. But, in order to make sure that there is no tampering with the specimen there are safeguards that can prevent that. Some of them are:
- Requiring your employees to wear hospital gowns
- Checking the temperature of the urine
- Listening to your employee urinate
- Listen for the dying of toilet water
You Must Maintain confidentiality
Just like any private information about your employees, all medical and drug test results must be kept confidential. To keep their results private you should collect their samples in a private and inconspicuous method. If the results come back as positive you must discuss the consequences with your employee in private.
Know the Accuracy of the Test
Depending on where you live the actions you can take will vary. If you are a member of the union in most cases you will be able to file a complaint that will make the test more accurate. You can do that by checking in with your department of labour or a private attorney.
If You Test one Person You Must Test All
To avoid getting any lawsuits because of discriminations, everyone who has been offered employment must be tested if you have tested one person. If you test only ones who you are suspecting to be using, you might be accused of doing drug tests based on their gender, race, or other statutes.
Can You Do Random Drug Tests
If you want to perform random testing they need to be done unannounced and in a way that isn’t predictable by employees. That way you will avoid any lawsuits based on discrimination. The best option for drug testing is the ones that don’t have notice in advance.
Even though it is allowed to perform drug tests in your workplace, In order to keep things calm and nor invade people’s privacy let them know that they are being tested and have a written policy. Do not test people without their consent.