Cansford Labs are looking forward to exhibiting at the Health and Wellbeing at Work exhibition in Birmingham on the 5th and 6th March. Our focus this year is on pre-employment drug testing: why it’s important, and how we can help you implement it.
While the common misconception is that drug abuse is a blue-collar problem, the statistics paint a different picture.
As 75% of adult illicit drug users are employed, it stands to reason that a significant number of white-collar workers are using drugs. This can pose serious problems for businesses and in some cases could even threaten the very survival of a business. To quote IOSH magazine: "Your staff are your greatest asset so recruiting and retaining the best and having those people fully engaged is one of the most critical things for businesses to survive.”
Due to widespread stereotypes around what type of person is likely to take drugs, coupled with the fact that blue-collar workers often work in safety-sensitive industries, pre-employment drug testing for white-collar workers is often overlooked or considered to be unnecessary. Here’s why it shouldn’t be…
The problem
In 2013, Professor David Nutt linked the 2008 financial crisis to cocaine-snorting bankers, saying: ‘Bankers use cocaine...their culture of excitement and drive and more and more and more… got us into this terrible mess’. While blaming the entire financial crash on substance abuse is a bit far-fetched, there is some truth in his statement.
White-collar workers may not be handling heavy machinery or driving large vehicles, but they are often in roles with huge responsibility, making decisions that affect the lives of many other people.
Stimulants like cocaine and speed can create feelings of invincibility or overconfidence, which, in turn, impair judgement and decision-making. The consequences of these actions may not result in direct fatalities, but they can still be dire and far-reaching.
People in managerial or executive roles often work long hours with heavy workloads and a poor work/life balance. This ‘staying up all night’ work culture has contributed to the rise in the use of prescription drugs like Provigil, Adderall and modafinil amongst white-collar workers.
A 2012 study by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration found that substance abuse in highly educated white-collar professionals was on the rise. This included heroin, other opioids, and prescription drugs.
Interestingly, the report concluded that white collar adults were almost three times more likely to have a drug addiction by the age of 26 compared to lower-income adults. It also found that wealthy men had drug and alcohol addiction rates of 19-24%; twice the US national average.
These figures highlight the need for pre-employment testing in white-collar workers. While it has become much more commonplace in the US, in the UK, pre-employment drugs tests for white-collar workers are still fairly uncommon - a fact that costs companies heavily. In 2016, the cost of drug abuse for UK employers was £100bn.
In addition to the prevalence of drug use amongst white-collar workers, the signs of substance abuse can also be harder to spot than in other segments of the workforce. The stereotype of drug users being lazy, dysfunctional and ineffectual promotes the misleading idea that if someone is high-functioning, they can’t possibly be using drugs. This notion couldn’t be further from the truth.
Many white-collar workers who take drugs are conscientious, reliable and maintain good social lives. That person you’re about to employ might seem unimpeachable - and they may well be - but without a drugs test, there is simply no way of knowing.
Pre-employment testing gives you peace of mind that the person you’re employing currently has no drug misuse problems. In effect, it helps to stop drugs from entering your workplace and sends the clear message that your company takes a zero tolerance approach to drug use.
Of course, a negative test doesn’t guarantee that your employee will never take drugs (just like a test drive won’t mean your car will never break down) but it does give you reassurance that at the time of employment at least, the person you’re hiring does not have a recent or present drug problem.
In addition to protecting yourself, pre-employment testing also demonstrates a commitment to creating a positive workplace culture and providing a duty of care for all employees. After all, if an employee is willing to abuse their body and mind in order to increase productivity or work longer hours for your company, how will it reflect on your business as a whole? How will it affect your other employees?
Making a positive change
At Cansford we understand that the idea of implementing a drug screening programme or pre-employment testing can seem daunting. From the costs to knowing which test to use to communicating your policy with employees, it can seem like more trouble than it’s worth - but it isn’t.
Pre-employment testing can save you money, time, hassle - even your reputation - in the long run. That’s why we work with organisations to recommend the most appropriate methods of testing for every stage of the employment process.
For example, in pre-employment, the most suitable testing method would be hair testing because it allows you to look at historic drug use. Hair testing is the most accurate method of testing and offers the widest window for the detection of drugs. This means you can look at drug use over the previous 12 months (depending on hair length) for a comprehensive picture of any potential drug problems.
By contrast, oral fluid (saliva) testing can only detect drugs taken up to a couple of days previously. Naturally, a prospective employee could simply cut out drug use for a few days or weeks prior to the test, making the results unreliable. While this method is ideal for on-the-spot mid-employment testing, it offers no insight into historic use, so you wouldn’t use it as a pre-employment test.
While there are DIY drug testing kits on the market, there are a number of drawbacks to using those instead of an accredited laboratory. Firstly, the kits test only oral fluid, which comes with the limitations listed above, as well as the added problem of being far less sensitive than industry standard testing. Then there’s the issue of admissibility.
DIY kits can call into question the legitimacy of the results by examining the chain of custody (the process of sample collection and testing). Any doubts regarding the chain of custody can render the results inadmissible in legal proceedings.
Using an accredited laboratory ensures that the collection process is accurate and above board, all of which can save you time and money. While DIY kits might seem like the cheaper, easier option, taking that route is likely to end up costing you more in the long run.
Drug use amongst white-collar workers is a growing issue; one which should not be ignored. Stressful jobs, long hours and poor self care all create the perfect storm for drug misuse. While pre-employment testing cannot eradicate the wider problem, it serves to highlight it, to set a precedence for zero tolerance and to minimise the chances of it entering your workplace.
