The goal of Oregon's GOSH Conference is to provide an educational forum where employers, safety and health professionals, safety committee members, line supervisors, manufacturers, and distributors can come to gain state of the art knowledge and skills leading to self-sufficiency in their occupational safety and health programs.
CleanFleet wants to educated companies on the Drug Testing Industry and hope this page helps you ask the right questions.
The cost of replacing an employee can range from 25% to 200% of their annual compensation. Add to this cost the additional legal and financial liabilities attached to a dismissal that is associated with drug use or a workplace injury. If you could significantly reduce your turn-over and risk liabilities, would it be worth it investigate whether a random drug and alcohol testing program could be beneficial to your business?
Companies need to create an atmosphere where, at every level, there is a desire to employ staff who will keep the workplace safe. An effective drug testing program promotes a safe, productive workplace in addition to a multitude of other benefits. Many companies decide to internally manage their drug testing program, but the hidden costs of doing so are high.
Need help with any of these steps? Already have a policy but want help updating it? CleanFleet can help you get started and help you save lives and protect your assets.
• An average of 29 drug testing bills passed each year between 2014-2016. In 2016 alone, 34 drug testing bills were passed and 14 states amended their existing laws.
• A leading national retail store paid $102,048 in monetary relief as a result of their failure to provide a reasonable accommodation for applicants or employees in the company's drug testing processes.
• Non-compliance with DOT regulations is not only a safety hazard, consider this: DOT employers are liable to the United States for a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed $10,000 for each offense.
Education for employees on the effects of drug and alcohol is important. But it is even more important to train any managers that have staff on reasonable suspicion training.
These managers see the day-to-day interactions and can catch warning signs of workplace drug or alcohol abuse.
CleanFleet offers Reasonable Suspicion Training, DER DATIA Certified Training, and other training classes to companies manager their Drug and Alcohol Policies as best as possible. Visit our Training Page to learn more.
A company’s drug and alcohol policy should be fair and reasonable, clearly stated, fully explained and understood across the company, and compliant with local, state, and federal law in the areas the company has employees. Failure to do so may lead to monetary damages and statutory penalties.
CleanFleet is a best-in-class testing service provider that can help companies with policy development from the ground up.
Fill out the form and one of our staff will reach out to you to get you started.
Our primary focus is with efficient and accurate collections. No waiting behind flu shots, exams and prescription refills. We specialize in following all federal DOT drug and alcohol regulations for your drivers and employee screening programs.
Walk-ins are welcomed at our North Portland and Clackamas collection sites or schedule your physicals/agility exams online!
Let CleanFleet be your SIDEKICK of speed and convenience.
Another tool in your SUPERHERO arsenal is Reasonable Suspicion Training and making sure your managers are updated and current on what to look for.
Our Online Reasonable Suspicion Training will help you determine if and/or when an employee may be impaired and the necessary steps to take to protect your company and the employee. The training will include the physical, behavioral, speech, and performance indicators of probable workplace abuse.
For more information on our online $89 RST training, fill out the form and we will reach out to you shortly.
How is Oral Testing different than other methods and what are its benefits?
We received a lot of questions around oral (saliva) testing. Right now the most widely used testing method is laboratory-based urine drug testing and often leads employers to believe this method is the safest bet for their company. This may not always be true.
Like urine, oral fluid testing detects recent drug use and may also identify very recent usage that may not be captured by urine testing: detection window of 8-48 hours vs 2-7 days for urine testing.
Saliva tests actually measure the parent compound: the psychoactive element of the drug. Detection of the parent compound in saliva indicates that the drug has entered the blood stream. Higher levels of the parent compound indicate higher levels of the drug contained within the body. This means that saliva levels can be used to measure impairment. In contrast, urine tests do not measure the parent compound, they measure the by-product compounds known as “metabolites”, which do not correspond with impairment levels.
Interestingly, based on recent Quest Diagnostics Drug Testing Index data, the overall positivity rate is higher for almost all drugs and more than twice the positivity for marijuana.
Today, oral fluid is also being considered for federally-regulated drug testing, such as for the trucking industry (some expect a ruling by October of this year). Last year, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published proposed Oral Fluid Mandatory Guidelines in the Federal Register, a first step towards permitting the use of oral fluid specimens for Federal drug testing.
Are police or companies able to instant test for impairment of Marijuana yet?
This question came up a lot and the short answer is No. However, NPR's article on a Potalyzer being used in California is being tested, could be the first practical roadside test for marijuana intoxication.
Hound Labs says its device can accurately detect whether a person has smoked pot in the last two hours, a window many consider the peak impairment time frame. "When you find THC in breath, you can be pretty darn sure that somebody smoked pot in the last couple of hours," Lynn says. "And we don't want to have people driving during that time period or, frankly, at a work site in a construction zone." The device also doubles as an alcohol breathalyzer, giving police an easy-to-use roadside for both intoxicants.
The issue is, the machine detects THC's mere presence in the breath, but it cannot calculate the amount of THC consumed. Police are trying to figure out who is potentially impaired, Lynn says, compared to "somebody who smoked maybe yesterday or a few days ago and is not impaired. They're not in the business of arresting people that are not impaired when it comes to marijuana. That makes no sense at all."
There's still no agreement on what amount or level of THC in breath, blood or saliva constitutes functional impairment. So far only seven states, including Washington and Montana, have set legal guidelines as to how much THC in the system makes you dangerous behind the wheel. Yet some scientists are skeptical, saying those limits aren't really backed by hard science. In the rest of the country, courts, police and scientists haven't been able to agree on which THC level constitutes functional impairment.
Can we still test for Marijuana in states where it is legal?
The Short answer is Yes. As the legal landscape surrounding marijuana continues to change, employers need to establish or update their drug-free workplace policy.
Understanding and following the local, state and Federal laws surrounding marijuana, and drug testing in general, is very important. For example, some states do not allow termination of employment for the first offense when tested positive for any drug.
Marijuana and its negative effects on the body and workplace risks should not be tolerated if health and safety is the main concern for a business, especially in safety-sensitive work roles, as should be the case with alcohol, opioids, and other drugs.
How should companies approach the updated OSHA rule on post-accident testing?
If OSHA believes an employer’s drug testing policy deters injury reporting, the penalties can be quite steep. The new rule increases an employer’s obligation to ensure that employees report work-related injuries and illnesses. Specifically, employers must establish “a reasonable procedure” for employees to report work-related injuries and illnesses promptly and accurately.
To avoid the penalties employers should focus on overbroad post-accident policy language and consider testing that is more narrowly tailored to at least show recent illegal drug use (for example, oral fluids testing).