Drug Treatment and Workplace Drug Testing: Politics, Symbolism and Organizational Dilemmas

• NCJ Number: 162153
• Author(s): J B Jacobs; L Zimmer
• Date Published: 1990
• Length: 34 pages
• Sale Source: New York University School of Law
• Publication Type: Report (Technical Assistance)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: DCC; Paper to be published in Behavioral Sciences and the Law, V 9, N 3, 1991

Annotation

This paper explains how the link between drug testing and drug treatment developed, discusses how it has been implemented in the workplace, and explores its implications for organizations.

Abstract

Widespread drug testing in the core institutions of society in the Untied States would not have been political possible without developing an explicit link to drug treatment. The crucial variables that account for the link between testing and treatment are public opinion, employee self-interest, collective bargaining agreements, the precedent and influence of employee assistance programs, and developments in workplace law. The implementation of the link between employee drug testing and drug treatment has involved the emergence of new organizational units, roles, and relationships between organizations. Among the dilemmas the link has produced are the necessity of distinguishing between drug abusers and casual users, the lack of effective drug treatment, and the lack of tangible benefits from treatment dollars. Linking drug treatment to drug testing has budgetary and operational consequences, including the issue of what to do with employees who are undergoing drug treatment to avoid liability issues resulting from potential errors, accidents, and injuries. 81 references