

It sends a cultural message."īut Calli cautioned: "You are taking away your flexibility. "If that's what you want to do, that's OK. Calli, SHRM-SCP, founder and principal consultant of Washington, D.C.-based Arc Human Capital. "When you have a zero-tolerance policy, you are putting a flag in the ground and taking a really strong stand," said Adam R. But you don't want that policy just because you've always had it." Nieman, a principal in the Washington, D.C., region office of law firm Jackson Lewis. Consider your risk tolerance for the workforce, and consider your risk tolerance for litigation," said Matthew F. "Make sure these decisions are pushed up the chain.

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When all reasons for testing are combined, almost 5 percent of the general workforce tested positive for one or more drugs in 2016, compared with 2 percent for those in federally regulated safety-sensitive positions.īefore relaxing zero-tolerance drug policies, make sure everyone in the company leadership supports the move and how to deal with the consequences. is also increasing, according to Quest, a major testing company based in Madison, N.J. The percentage of job applicants who test positive for illegal drugs in the U.S. Cocaine and methamphetamine abuse continues to rise nationally, according to the Quest Diagnostics 2017 Drug Testing Index. Marijuana and opioids are not the only problems. "It's based on individualized assessment."ĭrug abuse remains rampant in the U.S. There's not a bright-line policy like there used to be," said Robert Capwell, chief knowledge officer of Baltimore-based pre-employment screening firm Employment Background Investigations Inc. It's unclear how widespread it is," said Rick Farrant, a spokesman for Northeast Indiana Works, a nonprofit workforce development organization based in Fort Wayne, Ind., that assists mostly health care and manufacturing employers. "Anecdotally, there are some employers who have relaxed their standards. However, HR and drug testing industry leaders say some employers are taking a new look at-and in some cases relaxing-their drug policies for positions that entail relatively low risk of injury or error, such as clerical and knowledge economy jobs.

Some such positions, including airline pilots and truck drivers, are regulated by the federal government and have strict prohibitions against drug use. There are no indications that employers are relaxing standards for jobs that are safety-critical. State laws allowing medical and recreational use of marijuana are complicating recruiters' efforts to find drug-free employees, as is the continued abuse of prescription opioids. Low unemployment and increasing use of illegal drugs are narrowing the pool of qualified workers in many regions and industries. Desperate to fill open positions, some employers are beginning to soften zero-tolerance drug policies, particularly for jobs where safety is not an essential function.
