NCJ Number
102632
Date Published
1986
Length
5 pages
Annotation
Treatment, legal, and labor issues associated with drug screening are discussed following an examination of employee drug testing policies in police departments and private industry.
Abstract
A survey of 33 major police departments indicates that 24 percent had drug testing programs. Virtually all departments had written policies and procedures for conducting tests in cases of suspected drug abuse by officers, and 73 percent tested applicants. In addition, 21 percent were considering mandatory testing of all officers, and 24 percent indicated that they would consider treatment (as opposed to dismissal) in some cases of drug use by officers. Further impetus for such testing has come from a model policy developed by the International Association of Chiefs of Police that calls for testing of applicants and recruits as part of the preemployment medical examination, of employees showing impaired performance, of those alleged to be involved with drugs, and of vice and narcotics units officers. About a fourth of the country's Fortune 500 companies now test applicants for drugs, and some firms require urinalysis testing of employees under certain conditions. Issues surrounding the technology of drug testing center on the reliability of testing, the problem of false positives, and procedural safeguards for conducting tests. Another issue centers on whether employees should be provided counseling and treatment or terminated. Legal issues raised in court include possible discrimination under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the balance of personal privacy rights and public interests. In general, unions feel that testing should be submitted to collective bargaining and should include safeguards against abuses. 1 table, 8 notes, and a listing of other reports.