Drug-Free Work Environment

• Receiving federal funding from a government granting agency requires that a work environment be drug-free. There is no sure way to know that employees are not abusing any substance while working. Although it is not required under the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988, employers have the right to drug test your employees. Administering a drug and alcohol test may not be done out of retaliation, and you may not violate the employee's privacy, or discriminate against him because of race, national origin, gender and other personal characteristics.
  
  

Tests

• Blood, urine, oral fluid and hair are some of the drug testing methods that an employer has the right to administer. An employer may use the breath-alcohol testing method on employees believed to be under the influence of alcohol while on-the-job. An employer with substance abuse testing policies has the right to test employees randomly, pre-employment, post-accident, reasonable suspicion and when an employee is returning to duty.
  
  

Time Off

• According to the Family and Medical Leave Act, an employer is required to give an employee that suffers from substance abuse time off. A company is exempt if it does not employee 50 or more employees in 20 or more workweeks according to the Department of Labor, or DOL. You are not required to pay wages to an employee for the 12 weeks she is off seeking substance abuse treatment. If your employee has worked with you for less than 12 months, and less than 1,250 hours over those 12 months, you are not required to grant her leave.
  
  

Discipline

• Disciplining an employee under the influence of drugs or alcohol at work is the right of an employer. An employee is required to meet the standards of performance and conduct according to company policy. If an employee's substance abuse issues impair her job performance, an employer has the right to suspend, discharge or deny employment to that employee. Some state drug testing laws encourage employers to send employees to a substance abuse treatment program instead of terminating the employee, but an employer has the right to refuse this option.
  
  

Prevention

• Keeping accurate records of drug and alcohol tests administered helps an employer prevent a lawsuit. Never share the records with unauthorized personnel or individuals. Document the name of the employee that test was given to, the reason for the test, the time of the test, the tests results and what action you took against the employee.