Urine vs Impairment Testing

Urine vs Impairment Testing 

Findings from the Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW) showed that around 1 in 11 adults aged 16 to 59 years had taken a drug in the last year. Arguably, these figures could be much higher given most people keep drug-taking behaviours hidden: The office of national statistics may not have the entire picture.  

In 2018, reportedly, you could get cocaine delivered to your home faster than a takeaway pizza, which suggests the demand for illicit substances in our communities is high.  

Drug testing in the workplace is becoming increasingly commonplace, as regulations tighten across industries such as rail and aviation. Industry experts expect it will not be long until more companies are testing their employees rather than avoiding it. 

Some UK businesses take the view that as long as employees are not impaired and complete the necessary work, It should not matter what an employee does in their personal time and do not see a drug testing programme as necessary for their business and could even be detrimental to a companies culture.

This could be a worrying prospect for business leaders with many joking they would not have a business left if they were to introduce a drug screening programme due to legislation.

Knowledge around the subject is crucial, and today, we are putting the different types of testing urine and impairment testing under the microscope to understand the difference: 

Urine testing determines which workers have used specific substances known to cause impairment in the relatively recent past and will offer results that are in today’s society, too broad for business purposes when identifying suitability and capability to perform a role but will offer employers an understanding as to whether an investigation is needed.  

A urine test could identify that someone has used marijuana whilst on holiday in a country that has legalised its use. If this employee is subjected to a urine test within a few weeks of that event, the result would be a “fail”, inciting an alienating internal investigation.  

For both employer and employee, this could pose serious problems which could have been avoided.  

The employer is faced with a choice and may have to remove this employee from duty even though they are a high-performer and valued member of the team.  

The employee could have their reputation subjected to unnecessary trauma at work, and they could find it has a detrimental impact on their career.  

Impairment tests indicate if the employee is impaired by alcohol or drugs in the relevant short-term and is affecting their abilities, not whether they have partaken in recreational activities within the weeks before. Impairment testing is beginning to be cited as progressive by experts given today’s culture.  

Impairment testing solutions will highlight and identify if an employee has taken substances that can impair their ability to do the job within a 12–24-hour window: Much more suitable for business purposes when regulation insists on testing.  

Testing for impairment rather than drugs allows workplaces to overcome legal and social changes by looking at if there is a problem.  

“Impairment testing is the practice of determining which workers in safety-sensitive positions put themselves and others at risk by directly measuring current fitness for duty. Urine testing, in contrast, attempts to determine which workers have used specific substances known to cause impairment in the relatively recent past.” (National Workrights Institute, 2010). 

Overall, impairment testing is becoming the test of choice: Any business that understands the necessity of testing from a health and safety perspective, but does not want to lose valuable employees based on past circumstances irrelevant to the situation, have selected impairment over urine every time.  

Impairment testing allows businesses to make testing relevant and fit for purpose: Impairment testing is proactive, preventative and can improve overall productivity and culture. 

Urine testing is becoming increasingly out-dated, is too narrow, invasive, expensive, and reactive. 

Drugs and alcohol testing is a sensitive subject, and we recommend getting in touch to understand what practice could be best for your business.  

Odilia Clark specialises in understanding your particular requirements and offers the appropriate alcohol and drug testing services alongside additional policy writing and training services. If you would like to find out more, please get in touch at https://odiliaclark.com/hr-services/.  

** 

This article was written by one of the Odilia Clark team. Odilia Clark is a specialist HR services company with over 30 years of combined experience in the space. If you would like to find out more, please contact the Odilia Clarke team today.