This excellent article by the U.S. National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provides an overview of the issues that are evolving regarding marijuana use and its effect in the workplace.  Marijuana is the most frequently used illicit drug in the U.S. with 43.5 million past-year users age 12 or over in 2018. Approximately one-fifth of all U.S. workers reported using marijuana in the past year. The implications for the workplace are significant, especially for risks to workplace safety and for the well-being...

الأسبوع الوطني للوقاية هو احتفال صحي سنوي مكرس لزيادة الوعي العام بالصحة العقلية و / أو اضطرابات تعاطي المخدرات والعمل حولها.

الغرض من الأسبوع الوطني للوقاية

الأهداف الرئيسية الثلاثة للأسبوع  الوطني للوقاية هي:

• إشراك المجتمعات في زيادة الوعي بقضايا تعاطي المخدرات والصحة العقلية وفي تنفيذ استراتيجيات الوقاية ، وعرض فعالية برامج الوقاية القائمة على الأدلة ؛
• تعزيز الشراكات والتعاون مع الوكالات الفيدرالية والمنظمات الوطنية المكرسة لتحسين الصحة العامة ؛ و
• تعزيز ونشر موارد ومنشورات عالية الجودة للوقاية من تعاطي المخدرات وتعزيز الصحة العقلية .

الموضوعات الصحية اليومية لعام 2021 هي:

•...

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) have disseminated more evidence-based prevention resources for parents.   “Listen First” is an initiative to increase support for prevention of drug use that is based on science and is thus an effective investment in the well-being of children and youth, their families and their communities. Listening to children and youth is the first step to help them grow healthy and safe. The website offers a variety of videos, science fact sheets, parenting tips, monthly newsletters, and much more. 

Since most parents are employed, having tools such...

Annually, on April 7th, the World Health Organization (WHO) focuses on recognizing World Health Day.  This year, WHO is advocating for building a fairer, healthier world for everyone. Advancing the universal importance of a healthy workplace, especially one that is substance free, is critical.

In a 2013 report, the International Labour Organization estimated that globally there are more than 3 billion workers (International Labour Organization, 2013). WHO stated that employees spend an average of one-third of their lives generating the products and services of their countries, however, 15...

An essential component of any drug testing program is a comprehensive final review of laboratory results, which includes review of appropriate documentation, as well as an interview with the donor of the specimen to discover whether or not an acceptable medical explanation exists for the laboratory result.

A confirmed positive test result reported from a laboratory does not automatically identify an employee or job applicant as having misused drugs, nor does a laboratory result of invalid, substituted, or adulterated automatically identify a person as having tampered with a specimen.

A...

Newsroom  |   Farah Hancock  |  October 12, 2020

Do the effects of cannabis mess with cognitive ability for days after use and are urine tests the best way to sniff-out at risk employees?

Kirk Hardy has in his boardroom a bulk bag of dried parsley flakes, which is well past its use-by date.

It's a prop, not an elderly garnish. The former police drug squad detective boasts he can estimate by sight what 14 grams - half an ounce - of parsley is.

The 14 grams is what’s proposed as the amount of cannabis a person can legally buy a day should cannabis be legalised [in New Zealand]...

The Covid-19 pandemic has had a major effect on people for the past year causing many different challenges, be it working or not working, taking care of children and home schooling, being separated from friends and family, grief from the loss of loved ones, being isolated; the list goes on and on. The effect on people’s mental health has resulted in many resorting to increased substance use.

Workplace Impact

Accelerated consumption of alcohol or the illicit use of drugs only serves to make the situation worse, especially if the consumers are employees. According to Quest Diagnostics Drug...

Over the past months, we have shared a number of reosurces regarding working parents and how the workplace can support their role within their family that will ultimately have a positive effect on their role on the job. Building confident and encouraging parenting and communication skills helps their kids to resist substance use.

Today we are sharing some resources from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). They havedeveloped resources for parenting entitled "Listen FIrst" and other parenting resources and tips.  This is especially important as families face the stress of...

The Employee Assistance Program (EAP) Prescription Drug Toolkit and Fact
Sheets from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
(SAMHSA) provides guidance related to counseling, referrals, and follow-up
services that EAPs can offer employees whose substance misuse has affected
their workplace environment. The Toolkit also shares insight for employers
about preventing substance misuse and maintaining professional standards.

These materials describe the ways in which EAPs provide alternatives to
prescription drugs, workplace drug misuse and relapse prevention, information
...

Substance Use Cost Calculator for Employers
Presented by Rachael Cooper and Dr. Eric Goplerud
3/17/21 @ 2pm-3pm EDT (UTC-4) 

Join the National Safety Council and NORC at the University of Chicago for a free webinar to learn about the new Substance Use Cost Calculator for Employers. Substance use is an issue in every U.S. workforce, with 1 in 12 workers dealing with an untreated substance use disorder. To address these issues, National Safety Council and NORC collaborated to update the Substance Use Cost Calculator for Employers, funded by Nationwide. This authoritative, easy-to-use tool...

From: Fulbright Australia 

A new study led by an Adelaide-based Fulbright Scholar has found that every dollar invested in programs that support and nurture employee mental health and wellness generated over three dollars of benefits through improving staff absenteeism and job performance.

Employee assistance programs (EAPs), voluntary workplace-based counselling programs, are widespread across industrialized countries, including the U.S., Canada, and Australia. Today, a team of researchers from the U.S. and Australia published the first known controlled economic evaluation of an EAP...

In recent months, we’ve featured several posts regarding parents in the workplace but I wanted to share some new parent resources from the U.S Department of Health and Human Service’s Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.  

You may recall our discussion about working parents that have a child that becomes involved with using drugs or alcohol and the negative effect that has on the parents’ focus on work responsibilities.  It is a great practice for workplaces to have educational resources available for parents and all employees on substance use topics such as those...

Cansford Laboratories | John Wicks |  January 2019

Workplace drug testing in Europe is a tricky business.

The European Convention on Human Rights guarantees the right to personal privacy, but waives it for cases involving public safety, the prevention of disorder and crime, or the protection of health and morals - among others. Further directives state that employers have a duty to ensure the health and safety of workers (at the employer’s cost), and they must consult workers on questions related to health and safety at work. Employees, meanwhile, are obliged to inform their employers of...

Quest Diagnostics Employer Solutions Blog l Dr. Barry Sample l  19 January 2021

As [U.S.] states pass legislation to allow medical and recreational marijuana use, some are questioning whether workplace drug testing for marijuana and other illicit drugs is appropriate or even necessary. Some argue that the war on drugs is over and, therefore, drug testing provides no value. Yet, the reality is that there is a wealth of research conducted by government and independent organizations showing that workplace drug use puts employees at risk – and a drug testing program can help to foster...

Work Comp Wire | September 30, 2020

NCCI recently released a new research brief on Drug-Free Workplace Premium Credit Programs, noting that legalization of marijuana, both recreational and medical, has been an active issue over the last few years, and its implications for workers’ compensation are still being evaluated.

One question naturally arises—what are the implications of the legalization of marijuana for WC Drug-Free Workplace safety programs? This question won’t be fully answered until case law evolves further.

Click Here to Read the Entire Article

Get the NCCI Research...

HRD Human Resources Director  l  John Hilton  l  13 Oct 2020

HRD talks to Kellie-Ann McDade, partner at Baker McKenzie, on dealing with substance abuse at work.

Many employers in Australia are going to great lengths to control drug and alcohol issues in the workplace.

In Tasmania, West Tamar Council deemed drug testing a success last year, after becoming the first Council in the state to apply testing to councillors.

The management of West Tamar Council said they introduced drug and alcohol testing four years ago because of the potential health and safety benefits for their...

SABC News l Jamaine Krige l 27 August 2020

Cannabis can be detected for up to four weeks by standard urine tests.

Recent changes in legislation which decriminalise cannabis use for adults in South Africa, have proven challenging for companies conducting drug-screening in the workplace.

Cannabis can be detected for up to four weeks by standard urine tests – the type most often used in a work environment. These tests, however, do not tell when the substance was used or whether the employee is impaired at the time of the test.

Read the entire article here