Get To Know the Drug Testing Laws

Drug testing can mean different things to different people. For an employee, it is a tactic of weeding out unproductive workers. From an employee’s standpoint, drug testing is interference to his/her privacy. In practice, it’s unfortunate that both the versions are true.

In America, drug testing laws are laid down by the state and are unique to each state. However, North Dakota, Washington DC and New Hampshire do not have any drug testing laws implemented till date. In sharp contrast to these states is the state of Oklahoma where the drug testing laws is very stringent and strict.

Though the drug tests are an intrusion to the privacy of the employees, the drug tests administered by the employers are legal in scenarios where the type of test and the procedure followed respected the privacy right of the employees.

The different types of drug testing are:

Pre-Employment Drug Tests: They are administered by employers before rolling the offer of employment to the new recruits. Passing this test is mandatory for getting recruited for that particular employer.

Random Drug Tests: They are the drug tests administered on the employees without any premonitions at workplace.

For-Cause Drug Tests: They are initiated based on suspicions arising out of the employee’s activities at workplace. They can also be administered if there is a possible violation of the anti – drug policy laid by the organization.

Periodic Drug Test: they are the ones which are conducted on a regular basis at the organization levels.

Post-Accident Drug Tests: Such tests are very helpful in revealing the cause of accidents. If a vehicle driver meets with an accident, he is asked to undergo this test to make sure of the influence of drugs on him when he met with the accident.

Drug Tests during Rehabilitation: If an individual who is subjected to rehabilitation process undergoes a drug test at the center periodically then such tests are performed to understand his reaction and drug habits during this process.

In America, drug testing laws varies from state to state. They differ depending on the business need posed by the employer for the administration of such tests and considering the right of the employee to enjoy the right of privacy. However, in the state of California, it is at the discretion of the court to determine the legality involved in the administration of drug tests.

If the drug testing procedures interferes with the privacy of the employee, then the employer is said to have violated the right of privacy of the employee.  The best thing that the employers can do to overcome such situations is to have a written agreement on the drug testing laws with each of their employees before their entry into the organization. Looking at the perspective of the employee, the employee’s right to privacy is given more value in the absence of any written agreement on the drug testing laws within the organization.

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1. Random Drug Testing at Workplace – a Boon or a Bane?
2. The Pros and Cons of Drug testing in schools
3. The Pros and Cons of Saliva Drug Testing
4. Is Mandatory Drug Testing In Schools Really Necessary?
5. How to pass drug testing
6. The Common Ways to Pass a Drug Test