Having a focused workforce is essential to higher productivity. No one wants a junkie working on an important business deal. So, imposing a “cleaner” workforce, drug testing is a must. Also, a strong HR team should be competent enough to carry out drug testing responsibilities.
It’s alarming that 67% of drug users of the USA are employed. It’s a clear indication that a massive number of people are backlogging the efficiency of the industry. Just like having capable HR management software, HR personals should have a clear strategy about drug testing as well.
Here is a list of top 5 things that you should know about drug testing –
1. The Proper Time of Conducting a Drug Test
Every company has different policies regarding the drug testing situation. In fact, most companies have the policy of a mandatory drug test as a pre-employment procedure. But this strategy is quite ineffective as most candidates will take proper steps to pass the test.
A better strategy would be conducting a time-random drug test. In this way, the employees would be unprepared and can’t take precautionary steps to pass the test.
However, making a random selection can be catastrophic as employees would feel targeted and team-playing mentality would get hurt badly. So, make sure that everyone goes through the procedure – from the CEO to the janitor.
2. Pricing Matters: Make Things Cost-Effective
Conducting a drug test is costly. An individual drug test comes with a price tag between $20 to $200. To make the whole process cost-effective, HR teams should focus on particular needs.
For example, a 10-panel or a 5-panel drug testing kit is one of the most effective kits in the market. But the price of the kit starts from $80 and reaches up to $220.
Rather, HR teams can opt for individual tests like urine tests, hair tests, saliva tests, or blood tests. These tests are targeted and effective against particular drugs only.
Moreover, the choice of the lab also determines the overall cost. Cutting a deal with a lab to do bulk testing might reduce the overall cost of the process.
3. Detoxifications: Beware of the Cheats!
There are many ways to cheat on drug tests. The most common and easiest way around drug tests is the use of detoxifications. With the help of a good detox, even a big-time junkie can pass a drug test with flying colors, click to know more.
There are many states in the USA and other countries that have banned these detoxifications. But people can always get such things in the black market. So, HR teams should be aware of them.
This is another major reason for you to conduct time-random drug tests. In that way, drug users can’t take precautions to cheat the test.
4. Medical Marijuana and Other Legal Drugs
Most of the drug users actually “abuse” the drug. There is the clinical and practical use of many of these drugs.
For example, amphetamines are one of the rising drugs around the world. Adderall, Ritalin, Modafinil, and Concentra did a $9 billion worth of business only in the USA. Similarly, deadly drugs like meth and speed are on the rise. But amphetamines are very effective against ADHD and similar conditions.
Moreover, people are very confused about marijuana. In the last decade, all the nations fought vigorously against marijuana and marijuana users. But now, the acceptance of medical and recreational marijuana is on the rise. More and more people are using recreational marijuana to relieve from daily stress.
It’s better to consider the individual employees and their condition before reaching a decision who take marijuana or amphetamines.
5. Monitor and Update Companies Drug Testing Policies
We are all familiar with the big names in the drug world – cocaine, heroin, meth, morphine, ketamine, LSD, and others.
But there are a lot of new drugs on the rise and every year a batch of new trending drugs emerge from nowhere.
For example, Kratom, Flakka, and Salvia are some of the dangerous drugs that can disrupt the workplace environment greatly.
As these drugs are quite rare and new many drug testing kits can overlook their presence or can’t identify them. Plus, many drastic changes are also happing around the world.
We simply can’t just stick to the plans we made against a drug that we created in the 2000s. We are in a new decade and we need to revise and change the older drug policies and come up with newer ones. Otherwise, we will be just beating around the bush!
At the same time, the newer policies should complement the newer laws taken by the government and changes in society.
Final Thoughts
Achieving corporate goals isn’t possible without having a strong focused team. A drug-addled team will be sloppy and incompetent. So, whether you are an HR personal or own your own business make sure to have a strong drug testing policy to thrive in your respective field.
Mary Walton is a professional editor, content strategist and a part of MarijuanaDetox team. Apart from writing, Mary is passionate about hiking and gaming. Feel free to contact her via Facebook
