at my work it has now become company policy to test somebody for drugs and alcohol if they have an accident ,regardless of the injury from breaking a nail to killing your self ,is this legal?

Don’t know but we had a D’n’A policy and will be sacked if (after test) we are found to have had more than 7 units in the previous 24 hours.

what line of work are you in?

Not the HSE gone mad but your employer.
What’s in your employment contract? If you haven’t signed up for it then they can not insist. What area do you work in, Rail?

Would suggest you’re quite careful with this – make sure that if you take *any* over the counter medicine you keep the empty box at the very least.

There are a couple of O.T.C. products that will cause a false positive on drug tests. Not experienced it myself but do know of someone who found himself in deep doo-doo [aviation industry] and he only just managed to prove his innocence.

we make electricity using the nuclear method

You have to agree to it. Has it always been like this or {since you joined the company} or is it a change in policy. You cannot be made to do a drug test without your agreement but the agreement could be in your contract.

Invasion of privacy in my book unless you have others lives in your hands. What sort of actions are they taking for positive tests? what sort of threshold levels?

Ruddy expensive as well

AP – how can they tell that – no alcohol test can differentiate between 3 or 3 pints the night before

Oh, the old banging 2 pieces of coal together method?

I’m surprised that they haven’t done it before TBH in such a safety critical industry (you’re not serving pie and mash in the canteen are you?)

Just refuse. No way can they do anything

roundwheels – Member
we make electricity using the nuclear method

well thats not very dangerous is it?

There’s a calculation based on body weight (and some other bits which I can’t remember) using a blood test and UCAS lab tests. It was sometimes a bit worrying when visiting one of my clients when they’d close a floor down every now and then and carry out tests on everyone.

TJ – sometimes I think you need to wind your neck in (said nicely of course)

its a gray area the company policy is random tests, but we are a contractor and the client has just started this out of the blue no consultation not even with there own employees .as for the consequences’s we dont quite know? like i say out of the blue

If you have nothing to worry abou go take the tests. If you have a health problem that needs addressing go and see your occy health or docs and get it sorted. To be honest i dont fancy a drink or drug dazed operative at the important buttons of a nuclear fusion plant. These policies are rife across all sorts of saftey critical occupations and they are to protect not just the public but you and your colleagues and to root out dangerous workers or work practices.
As for invasion of privacy-I would repeat if there is nothing to hide where is the invasion. The consumption of illegal narcotics is errrr illegal simply by possession (dont even get me into funding crime and terrorism). Being drunk/impaired at work is plain dangerous.
Trust me compared to some organisation vetting policies this is nothing!

In my place (oil industry) if you have a mishap ( accident or Fӣ%up) you get tested as it is viewed as just cause.

Invasion of privacy in my book unless you have others lives in your hands.

Without further details on what he does, there’s a strong implication that he has a lot of lives in his hands!

Point taken ap – crossed posts so I didn’t see the nuclear power bit. However to me this is still a gross invasion of privacy. What you do at home is no business of your work unless you are unfit to work.

Ap – trouble with that is that different people metabolise alcohol differently – so testing like that will not distinguish between 6 units and 8 reliably

Trouble is false positives / low thresholds. alcohol can be detected for a day or two IIRC, cannabis even from passive smoking for weeks, poppy seed bread can give positives for opiates as can OTC co codamol and cough medicines.

TJ you hit the nail on the head and this is why its done!

What you do at home is no business of your work unless you are unfit to work.

It is not illegal to have drugs in your bloodstream

mishap ( accident or Fӣ%up) you get tested as it is viewed as just cause.

the last company i use to work for this was deemed as time for promotion

also here’s a good point that i missed, was if you have a accident and its deemed as you Owen fault they take disaplinary action agenst you and two people have already been given written warnings

Yes that may be so, however, a result would be suggestive of what had been consumed.

It is if you are driving and you are impaired. It is in certain occupations too ie pilots-and alcohol is a drug too is it not?
Alas it saddens me the number of people who should know better that think its okay to use any sort of illegal drugs or any legal drug for self pleasure/abuse.

A very good way of reduceing staff levels, without redundancy, as for nuclear power, an excessive waste of money in the long term for short term political gains.

Any road traffic collision you get tested for drink and illegal substances.

start a different thread for a debate on nuclear power

A very good way of reduceing staff levels, without redundancy Any road traffic collision you get tested for drink and illegal substances.

Happy.

project 🙂

It is illegal to drive under the influence – not with drugs in your system. subtle difference. You can have drugs in your system and not be under the influence.

You don’t get routinely tested for drug in a rtc (up here anyway) as that is no proof you were under the influence.

Go to a party where someone smokes a spliff and that is detectable in your body for weeks. You were never under the influence.

Are they also testing for excessive tiredness – equally dangerous – or prescription drugs? Tranks and antidepressants can markedly affect your performance as can depression or anger.

would have thought now nuclear industry is owned by french being under influence of wine was compulsary. Not unique, and a sensible policy given the environment in which you work, railway has had it for years, not an issue if you are sensible.

Whilst I have considerable sympathy towards those who have to endure the more silly and pointless health and safety rules (I am a victim of such rules myself) and without wanting to comment on the rights or wrongs of drug testing, I don’t know why, but I feel strangely uncomfortable about someone who works in the nuclear industry starting a thread suggesting that the Health and Safety Executive has gone mad 😯

Alas it saddens me the number of people who should know better that think its okay to use any sort of illegal drugs or any legal drug for self pleasure/abuse.

Could you explain this, please? (Unless you’ve never taken Caffeine, Alcohol, or Nicotine for pleasure, or ever done anything else remotely illegal like copy a friend’s CD, do 80 on the motorway etc, in which case you must be perfect and there’s no problem.)

If a person taking drugs (for argument’s sake, weed) is not affecting anyone else, then where’s the problem? Before anyone gets hippy about supply chains etc, go and investigate workers’ conditions for every product you consume, then stop being so pious…

it saddens me the number of people who should know better that think its okay to use any sort of illegal drugs or any legal drug for self pleasure

Why’s that then? Some people would say mountain biking was a fairly stupid form of ‘self-pleasure’.

The last two posts sum it up-how peoples thoughts vary on the issue of self abuse and illegality. We will never agree so will have to agree to disagree but lets hope that the thought of it not hurting anyone else remains true (unfortunately all too often this is not the case somewhere down the line either pre purchase or after consumption).
As for being perfect I am in no way perfect but try to ensure that nothing I ever do will ever impact in a bad way on someone elses life-its knowing the difference between right and wrong essentially.

Can I just be a little pedantic please?

To be honest i dont fancy a drink or drug dazed operative at the important buttons of a nuclear fusion plant.

I dont think we have a working nuclear fusion plant yet?

Ecstasy does less damage to public health than horseriding

“Ecstasy does less damage to public health than horseriding “

Does it? Have you accounted for the benfits of being outdoors and the phycial effort of riding a horse or are you just quoting out of context?

In any case I don’t think ecstasy or horseriding have any place in Nuclear power plant.

Ecstasy does less damage to public health than horseriding

That’s a step beyond even what the Prof with the apt name said.

Sorry – trolling really

Nothing at all to do with “The HSE” but obviously company policy.

It’s standard practice in many high risk industries, including my own. If the IP hasn’t been up to no good, why worry?

Re TJ’s comments on invasion of privacy. What about a co-workers rights? You have a duty of care to those who are affected by your acts or ommisions. I’d rather not have a stoner co-worker operating plant/machinery!

Passive smoking staying in your blood stream for weeks is falacy btw.

I like the image of haorse riding round the halls of a nuclear plant though.

Very Springfield

haorse = horse (obviously)

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