In a difficult labour market where quality candidates are scarce, business owners have been left scrambling trying to fill roles to ensure business operations continue to run as smoothly as possible. It’s not easy though, and in the interest of the bottom line, employers may resort to forgoing drug and alcohol testing in order to onboard employees to get the work done.
Managers may view this as a low-risk strategic choice in a tough labour market but by not implementing pre-employment drug and alcohol screening, businesses have the potential to be exposed to a range of risks such as injury or harm to workers, workplace incidents, workers compensation claims, damage to company property or the cost of having to repeat the recruitment, selection and onboarding process if a new starter is later found to be unsuitable.
Effectively assess fitness for work
Implementing pre-employment drug and alcohol screening allows managers to effectively assess a person’s fitness for work by identifying candidates who are most likely to meet expectations in relation to the use of drugs and alcohol. Drug and alcohol testing at the selection stage also sends a clear message to potential new starters that using drugs and alcohol in the workplace is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.
Business owners have a duty of care to workers to provide a safe working environment. The misuse of drugs and alcohol in the workplace puts the wellbeing of employees at risk, affecting their ability to work safely and creating risk to others. Implementing drug and alcohol screening during the selection process is a practical and simple step to help mitigate this type of behaviour.
Minimise risk in the workplace
An employee affected by drugs and alcohol at work may have impaired coordination, lack of motor control, lapse in concentration and alertness, or the inability to exercise judgement. In a workplace this can spell disaster, not only to the employee who is under the influence but also to co-workers, clients and others in the workplace.
This is especially dangerous in high-risk and safety critical jobs such as transport drivers or workers who operate dangerous machinery, where the use of drugs and alcohol could cause harm or in serious circumstances even death. In these instances, businesses can be exposed to lawsuits, cases of negligence or workers compensation costs.
Employees who are impaired by drugs or alcohol may also behave in a manner not aligned with the professional standards and expectations outlined in the company code of conduct, and engage in inappropriate behaviour in the workplace. Employees who fail to treat other workers in a safe and respectful manner free from discrimination, bullying, harassment and sexual harassment are not only in breach of company policies, but also workplace laws. These types of behaviours can lead to disciplinary action and in some cases, termination.
Avoid wasting time and money
The selection, recruitment and onboarding process can be lengthy and costly. By the time a new starter commences a position, a significant investment has already been made and the last thing a manager wants is to have to re-do the entire process if a candidate is later revealed to be unsuitable due to misusing drugs and alcohol in the workplace.
Employees who engage in drug use may also be prone to health issues resulting in increased absenteeism and reduced productivity at work. Knowing whether a candidate will misuse drugs or alcohol at work is difficult to determine based on a few meetings, but requesting that candidates complete a drug and alcohol screen as part of pre-employment testing will allow managers to eliminate candidates who do not meet expectations sooner rather than later and save any potential issues in the future.
Including drug and alcohol screening as part of the selection, recruitment and onboarding process is a step in the right direction to ensuring the successful candidate is fit for work and understands and agrees to the expectations of employees surrounding drug and alcohol use at work.
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