Screening and drug testing in St Louis have become an important part of making sure that employees are fit to work safely and can be productive. St Louis is the second-largest city in Missouri and, with its greater population, come the social problems that employees may experience. It is the responsibility of the employer to see that workers themselves and their colleagues are not being put at harm because of drug-taking.
How Drugs Impair Judgement and so Compromise Safety
The chemicals in drugs are disruptive to the brain’s communication system and so change the way it processes its information. The chemicals take over and will act as the brain’s natural neurotransmitters or cause the brain to release too many of them.
In terms of how drugs affect behaviour, it is likely to make someone irresponsible and careless in their thinking. This can lead to accidents happening when not enough care is taken with any equipment. To have someone who is on drugs working any kind of equipment is to take an unnecessary risk and to potentially put several employees at risk of harm.
Drugs can also lead to inappropriate behaviour in respect of interactions with other staff. This can lead to problems with other workers feeling unsafe in the working environment. Nobody wants to be around those who are unpredictable and likely to do things that we disapprove of that can cause distress or harm.
Health and Safety
We must be mindful of Health and Safety policies and how allowing someone to work who is under the influence of drugs will affect that. It could potentially invalidate insurance claims when it is knowingly allowed to happen. The employer has a duty of care in respect of the welfare of all its workers. They cannot consider just the person taking drugs, for whatever reason, but must consider all the members of staff around them. So, drug testing is a way of not breaching the health and safety policy that is in place for every business.
Productivity
Those on drugs will have their working judgments and abilities impaired and so are going to be less productive and result in less money earned for their employer. So, employees need to be drug-free to remain at the peak of production. Therefore, it makes sense to screen and test them for drugs so they will perform better in their duties.
Depressants will affect coordination and concentration. They will slow down someone’s ability to respond to unexpected situations or events. In small doses, they will mean that someone will feel more relaxed and less inhibited. It is not good when someone is working for them to feel too relaxed or uninhibited enough not to care. This needs to be monitored in terms of the level of drugs and how much the benefits outweigh any possible impairment. It depends on the drug tolerance levels of a company and whether the tasks have potential dangers attached to them.
Type of Work
Some work is more dangerous than others. It requires a greater degree of judgment and good sense. Some types of work will warrant compulsory screening to maintain safety. A job where good coordination is required will be a position for which drug testing is a necessity. It is a good idea for all occupations, but especially vital where machinery is being used in a confined space.
In conclusion, the drug testing of employees is important because drugs impair judgment, which then becomes both a safety and a productivity issue for a business. The type of work does make a difference, in terms of the risks involved, but it is a good idea to test all staff with regards to the drugs in their system so that an assessment can be made as to their safety to work and to decide if their productivity levels are sustainable in the long-term in terms of profitability.
