Drugs: Abuse and Testing in the Workplace

Author

Veronica L. Bradley-Terry, Fontbonne College

Year of Award

1992

Degree

Master of Business Administration (MBA)

College

College of Business & Professional Studies

Degree Program

Business

Department

Business Administration

Keywords

Narcotic, addiction, prescription, marijuana, alcohol, employee, testing, privacy

Abstract

Chemicals (drugs and alcohol) is a very common problem in America, and it has unfortunately become a problem in the work place. This problem is basically a consequence of the widespread availability of various types of chemicals. These chemicals (legal or illegal) can be purchased on the street corners, in school yards, hospitals, and even from our homes.

Those who sell chemicals do not discriminate because of age, race, sex, religion or economic status. Chemicals are available to anyone willing to purchase them.

The purchasers/abusers of such chemicals are working men and women, doctors, professional sport players, and children. The major purchasers of drugs are working individuals who can afford to pay for them, at least in the beginning.

Research indicates alcohol is not only the most commonly abused chemical in the work place, but it is also the major cause of fatal accidents on the job. Alcohol is a legal chemical that can be purchased almost anywhere at anytime; it is more readily available than any other .chemically abused substance.

Anyone can be an abuser of drugs in the work force. The median age of chemical abusers is forty years. Surveys indicated cocaine and marijuana to be the drug of choice among younger people.

More working women are becoming alcoholics, and they are the principle users of prescribed drugs. Research contributes the increase of chemical abuse among women to the strain of working and being responsible for child rearing.

Drugs in the work place are contributed to family problems and stress causing factors on the job, such as lack of upward mobility, control of physical environment, sufficient pay and various forms of discrimination.

What can be done to eliminate drugs in the work place? Many companies have turned to drug testing for a solution. Many are using drug testing as a deterrent to those who are financially able to support drug habits.

Employers are including drug testing when screening new employees. Many employers are drug testing existing employees for promotional opportunities, transfers, and recalls.

Is drug testing really a deterrent to the chemical abuser? This paper will review the different testing and accuracy of those procedures, as well as what can be done to eliminate drug abuse in the work place.

Comments

Appendices comprise the following pamphlets not included in this digital file. Contact University Archives to view print original.

Achieving a Drug-Free Workplace: Answers to Your Questions, Defense Contract Audit Agency, July 1991

Urine Specimen Collection Procedures Guide, 49 CFR Part 40, U.S. Department of Transportation, October 1990

AFL-CIO, AFGE, AFGE-DCAA vs. Richard B. Cheney and William H. Reed case, August, 1991

Treatment is the Answer: A White Paper on the Cost-Effectiveness of Alcoholism and Drug Dependency Treatment, National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers, March 1991

EAP: Employee Assistance Program, U.S. Public Health Service

The Edgewood Program: A System of Support for a Lifetime of Recovery

The Edgewood Program 1917-1991

Document Type

Restricted Thesis

Recommended Citation

Bradley-Terry, Veronica L., "Drugs: Abuse and Testing in the Workplace" (1992). All Theses, Dissertations, and Capstone Projects. 529.
https://griffinshare.fontbonne.edu/all-etds/529