Your Work and Your Health
Drug and Alcohol Abuse - the employees' perspective
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is substance abuse?
- What sorts of problems can substance abuse cause in the workplace?
- What are the signs of drug/alcohol misuse in the workplace?
- What are the effects of drinking on productivity and safety?
- What happens when somebody drinks alcohol (the legal drug)?
- What are my employer’s responsibilities regarding substance abuse in the work place?
- Is it illegal to take drugs and consume alcohol at work?
- What are my responsibilities as an employee regarding drugs and alcohol in the workplace?
- What is the law on drugs and alcohol?
- What does the drug testing entail?
- What type of employees in the UK might be tested for drugs/alcohol?
- Drug/alcohol testing in the workplace: what are the arguments for and against?
- Can my employer make me take a drug/alcohol test?
- If my employer policy involves drug and alcohol testing at work, how can I be sure that the results are correct?
- Where can I get help and advice?
What is substance abuse?
Workplace substance abuse can be:
- misuse of alcohol;
- misuse of workplace chemicals e.g. solvents, lighter fuel, correction fluids, aerosol sprays;
- misuse of prescribed drugs e.g. tranquilisers, sleeping pills;
- misuse of controlled drugs e.g. cannabis, cocaine, ecstasy.
Alcohol is a legal drug. Workers cannot automatically be penalised if they have consumed alcohol, although employers can set a level above which the employee would be considered impaired. In some cases this may be lower than the legal limit for driving. Also, in some organisations employers set limits for employees carrying out certain duties, e.g. piloting a plane, that exclude them from consuming any alcohol within a certain time period before commencing work. Breach of these rules can lead to dismissal. Research suggests that alcohol misuse is a more common problem than illegal drug taking. The majority of people with an alcohol problem have a job but this is not to say that the majority of people at work have an alcohol problem.
What sorts of problems can substance abuse cause in the workplace?
Drugs and alcohol can change the way a person thinks and feels and this can lead to poor judgment or concentration. This may affect a person’s work performance, even when the misuse takes place outside the workplace. A person whose work performance is being affected by substance abuse can pose a risk to their own and other people’s health and safety. This risk can be higher in certain occupations.
What are the signs of drug/alcohol misuse in the workplace?
Drug and alcohol misuse can lead to sickness, accidents, lateness, absenteeism, depression, reduced work rate, poor performance, safety concerns, bad behaviour and poor discipline. Drug and alcohol misuse can have a negative effect on team morale and employee relationships.
Back to the top What are the effects of drinking on productivity and safety?
Alcohol consumption may result in reduced work performance, damaged customer relations and resentment amongst other employees who have to cover for their unproductive colleagues. Alcohol could be responsible for workplace accidents as it affects judgment and physical co-ordination. Alcohol related absenteeism and sickness absence amounts to 3-5% of total absence and 8-14 million lost working days in the UK every year (www:hse:gov.uk/pubns/indg240.htm).
What happens when somebody drinks alcohol (the legal drug)?
The concentration of alcohol in the body (blood alcohol) depends on many factors, but mainly on body weight, amount consumed and duration of drinking.
In a healthy person it takes about 1 hour to break down and remove 1 unit of alcohol. Contrary to general belief, black coffee, cold showers and fresh air do not influence the decay in blood alcohol levels. Only time can remove alcohol from the blood stream.
Even at blood alcohol concentration lower than the legal drink/drive limit, alcohol reduces physical co-ordination and reaction speeds. It also affects judgment and response/reaction time. Large amount of alcohol can put strain on liver, muscle function and stamina. It can also raise blood pressure and increase the risk of coronary heart disease and stroke.
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What are my employer’s responsibilities regarding substance abuse in the work place?
Your employer has a duty to ensure employees' health, safety and welfare at work and to assess risks to the health and safety of employees. This means the employer would be committing an offence to knowingly allow an employee to work whilst under the influence of alcohol or drugs where it poses a threat to the health and safety of that employee or other people. To knowingly allow controlled drugs to be illegally made, supplied or used on their premises is also an offence.
Government highly recommends, and it is best practice, that your employer should have a written policy on drugs and alcohol in the workplace and the strictness of the policy and how it is put into practice will vary depending on the industry. A good policy should offer advice for workers who may have a problem, but also clearly explain any possible disciplinary actions. It should encourage workers to seek help from appropriate sources (www.hse.gov.uk/alcoholdrugs/index.htm) and guide workers to such sources. The policy should apply to all workers, although certain elements, e.g. testing of those doing safety critical jobs, may only apply to some workers. These distinctions should be justified and clearly explained.
A policy may require workers, in particular those workers undertaking safety critical operations, to undergo drug testing either as part of pre-employment or as a part of a random testing scheme or after an incident.
Is it illegal to take drugs and consume alcohol at work?
It is not illegal to drink a certain amount of alcohol during a break; however, what effect it will have on your performance at work is very important. Considering the effect that alcohol may have on your performance, drinking alcohol at work is not recommended. It may also break company policy and any contractual agreement, which may have employment consequence.
Obviously prescribed drugs may need to be taken during work time. However, some prescribed drugs can affect performance and employers within safety critical industries have a policy that asks employees to declare any prescribed medication they are taking. An employee using, supplying, or having an unprescribed controlled drug in their possession in the workplace is carrying out an offence as much as if outside work.
What are my responsibilities as an employee regarding drugs and alcohol in the workplace?
As an employee you are also required to take reasonable care of yourself and to behave in a way that does not pose risks to the health and safety of yourself or others in the workplace. This includes consideration of the effects that intoxication through taking alcohol or drugs may have.
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What is the law on drugs and alcohol?
- It is a criminal offence for certain workers, such as drivers or operators of public transport systems, to be unfit for their work due to taking drugs or alcohol.
- It is a criminal offence to be unfit to drive, attempt to drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle when under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
What does the drug testing entail?
Drug/alcohol testing may be carried out by organisations: pre-employment; part of a random testing scheme, at random; or as a result of an incident. In some organisations changes in a person’s behaviour, which strongly suggest drug/alcohol misuse, may also lead to testing.
The test should involve trained staff carrying out screening tests on a non-invasive (without taking blood or body sample by medical procedures) sample taken from an employee (usually a urine sample, but saliva or hair could also be used). Aspects of the sample collection and test are designed to reduce the possibility of the test giving a false result. For example, subjects will be asked at the time of the sample collection about any current medication, as some medicines may interfere with the results. The test results would report the levels of alcohol and the presence/absence of illicit drugs found in the sample. Any positive test results would be confirmed by further testing and reviewed by experts. The way the samples are collected and tested should be to a sufficient standard that the result could be defended in an employment tribunal or court of law.
It is necessary to comply with a few important steps for the drug testing to be legal and safe:
- Testing only to be carried out as a part of an “agreed policy”;
- Samples to be collected under supervised conditions but respecting human dignity. Two identical samples are taken either on site or split in the test laboratory;
- Samples to be kept under “Chain of Custody” at all times (see detail in Employers' section);
- Screening test for common drugs to be carried out on one sample with either positive or negative results;
- Any positive results from screening to be confirmed by specific technique (GC-MS);
- Results to be reviewed by an expert and reported back;
- Second sample to be kept for further analysis as part of any appeal by the employee;
- Confidentiality should be maintained at all times.
What type of employees in the UK should be tested for drugs/alcohol?
The UK government Health and Safety Executive (HSE) does not encourage widespread workplace drug testing and testing is not enforced by HSE in any industry. However, employers may consider it necessary for certain jobs where safety or security is critical, e.g. public transport, nuclear industry, armed forces, financial sector.
Effective workplace drug and alcohol policies have been suggested as a better way of achieving results than drug/alcohol testing in most UK industries. Providing an environment where employees can discuss any drug/alcohol problems they have, with the prospect of gaining help and support, may be more effective than a testing regime.
Drug/alcohol testing in the workplace: what are the arguments for and against?
The arguments for drug testing at work are that there are benefits for safety, efficiency, an organisation’s reputation and employee welfare. The arguments against drug testing are that it has not been clearly shown to be beneficial, it invades people’s privacy and it may damage relations between employers and staff. The research so far has not provided clear-cut answers to these arguments and different decisions about whether it is necessary, appropriate and legal will be made in different workplaces. Drug/alcohol testing should not be imposed on a workforce; it is important that both employers and employees are involved in the introduction of any policies and testing regimes.
Can my employer make me take a drug/alcohol test?
The employer can only ask you for a drug/alcohol test if there is a policy in place. It should be made clear to you in your employment contract document about the drug policy. Under these circumstances your employer may legitimately ask you to take part in a drug/alcohol test. However, this should be done with prior consultation and knowledge.
If my employer policy involves drug and alcohol testing at work, how can I be sure that the results are correct?
- You should sign your agreement to provide a biological samples for testing;
- Samples should be collected under chain of custody i.e. tamper proof seal in your presence;
- You have right of appeal.
Where can I get help and advice?
You will find information on alcohol and drug misuse and the workplace on the HSE website:
www.hse.gov.uk/alcoholdrugs/index.htm
The majority of people who drink alcohol enjoy it without causing harm to themselves or others, for advice on sensible drinking visit:
www.portmangroup.org.uk/
If you are concerned about your own drinking or drug taking, help and advice are available from your company’s private occupational health service (if they have one) or from the NHS via your General Practitioner (GP). You can also get general information on the following website:
www.drugs.gov.uk
As a first port-of-call for support services for drug or alcohol problems in your area you can call the ‘ask Frank’ telephone helplines:
- Ask Frank gives free, confidential advice and information about drugs 24 hours a day, telephone 0800 776600, email Frank@talktofrank.com
- The Drinkline gives free, confidential advice and information about alcohol and alcohol problems. The telephone advisors are available from 9.30am - 11pm during weekdays. Telephone 0800 917 8282.
You can also obtain further information from:
The Alcohol Education and Research Council (aerc)
UK Narcotics Anonymous
Alcoholics Anonymous