While employee drug testing has its place in any workplace alcohol and other drug policy, there are some concerns I would like to raise in relation to your article on drugs (CM, February 2007).

After 25 years working in the area of employee drug use there is one thing I am sure of: the problem is not the drug itself. To overly focus on drug use (as testing must) and not work performance is a critical mistake.

People use alcohol and other drugs for many reasons and in many different ways, but testing ignores this fact and suggests that ‘science’ has a solution to all problems. It doesn’t. Flawed technology, the fact that the young and the naive are those generally caught (experienced users know how to bypass positive results) plus the fact that it makes the drug the problem, requires employers to rethink drug testing policies.

People are complex, drug use is complex and solving employee drug issues will require more than a urine sample. Employee Assistance Programmes (EAP) have been shown in every independent study of the past 15 years to be a far better way to combat employee alcohol and other drug use.

Tony Buon CEAP, workplace psychologist, scotcoach.co.uk

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Construction Manager