If you are a business owner and you’re considering using drug testing in Texarkana TX to monitor your employees’ drug use, you need to set up a drug-testing policy for your business. Why is this important? Because you will be setting yourself and your business up for possible legal action if you don’t have a written policy that states up front what you expect from your employees and the criteria for drug testing, among other things. What are the steps you should take to accomplish this?
- Work with a great drug test provider. When you work with a drug test provider you can trust to carry out drug testing in Texarkana TX carefully and with fool-proof results, you will ensure that questions about the drug testing procedure itself will be minimized. In addition, a great test provider may also help you to set up your drug testing policy. Many providers offer this service in addition to testing.
- Set up a clear, written drug policy. Work with your drug test provider to put down in writing a consistent, easy-to-understand drug policy for your business. Keep in mind that your policy is essentially a contract between you and your employees that tells them about your commitment to a drug-free workplace and that this means that they are not allowed to use illegal drugs or alcohol on the job. Your drug policy should also let your employees know why they may be tested, including pre-employment, randomly or when you suspect drug use. The policy must also state what the penalties are for violating it. When you’re done, make sure to have your attorney review the policy.
- Establish a good record-keeping system. This is important because you need to have an orderly and easily-accessible filing system for your own use and it is essential in case you’re called upon by someone outside of your company to produce records pertaining to drug testing of individual employees. You may be asked for your records for a legal proceeding or for examination by government agencies.
- Train or educate employees and supervisors. Your employees need to know what your drug testing policy is and they need to receive a copy of it in writing. If your employees know what you expect and what the consequences of policy violation are, they may be less likely to drink or take drugs on the job. Your supervisors not only have to know what the drug testing policy is, they need to be trained in recognizing patterns of behavior that can indicate that an employee has a drug or alcohol problem. They should know how and when to refer these employees to appropriate sources of help.
- Set up an employee assistance program. If you have the resources, setting up a program wherein your employees who have drug, alcohol or other personal problems can get help and counseling is an excellent way to show them that you’re on their side and that you want them to succeed. If your employees are covered under a health plan, an assistance program may already be in place there.
When you’re considering implementing drug testing in Texarkana TX and you need help, call us at DATCS at (318) 678-5568. We will conduct drug and alcohol testing for your company and we can help you to formulate a drug testing policy. Not only are our DATCS staff knowledgeable and highly-trained, we are dependable and on-call 24/7 for emergencies. Visit us at www.datet.com to learn more.
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