Helping workers stay off drugs or quit using illicit drugs can be accomplished in a number of ways. Employers can play an important role Drug Testingbecause they have a front line advantage.

1. Healthy Lifestyles Education Contributes to Substance Free Workplace
Helping workers stay off drugs or quit using illicit drugs
can be accomplished in a number of ways. Employers
can play an important role because they have a front
line advantage. Though drug and alcohol testing can be
viewed strictly as a necessary step in keeping
substances out of the workplace, testing can also be one
component in a workplace program promoting good
decision-making in areas of health. In other words,
employees are encouraged to make good lifestyle
decisions that impact general health. The employer
benefits because
healthy employees are more
productive, take fewer sick days, and make fewer health
insurance claims. Worker education programs that
promote staying off drugs and avoiding excessive use of alcohol a lifestyle decision,
in addition to eating healthy and getting regular exercise, make sense.
Positive Component of Broader Policy
All too often, employers and employees view drug and alcohol testing programs as
stand-alone initiatives. They are not encapsulated in general workplace health and
safety policies and procedures. Unfortunately, that approach contributes to the idea
that alcohol and drug testing is a “catch-you” program rather than a positive
company-wide approach to promoting good healthcare. Healthy lifestyles on all
levels in personal lives equate to healthy lifestyles in the workplace in a number of
ways that may not seem obvious at first glance.
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Co-workers do not support or protect fellow workers who are using drugs and
alcohol in the workplace because they understand the implications in terms
of potential injuries
Employees are more likely to report safety hazards resulting from co-worker
substance abuse because they are more aware of the dangers
Employees are more supportive of the drug and alcohol testing programs
because they can connect it to healthy lifestyles
Job satisfaction is increased by creating a workplace environment that is
perceived as supportive and caring
Improves workplace morale by promoting a positive psychosocial work
environment
Reduces worker stress and anxiety and promotes a feeling of power and
control because substance abuse is not tolerated
One of the issues associated with workplace substance abuse is the fact co-workers
cover for other people. They do not want to be tattle-tellers or feel there will be
repercussions as a result of reporting workplace substance abuse. Creating a
substance free workplace is not always easy because drugs and alcohol have

2. become so pervasive in society. However, achieving that goal benefits everyone –
workers, worker families, employers, and communities.
Fitting the drug and alcohol policy and testing procedures into a healthy workplace
program is not difficult. It begins with company-wide change initiatives that
promote positive attitudes toward healthy practices and are supported by
management practices that reinforce those attitudes. 1 For example, many
companies hold training workshops that teach safety and ways to avoid injuries.
The sessions are supplemented with a reporting system that documents incidences,
and the reports are analysed to determine if there are ways to prevent the same
injuries from happening again. People under the influence of drugs and alcohol have
a higher risk of incurring injury, and this information is incorporated into future
workshops.
A drug and alcohol organisational change initiative can be approached in the same
manner. Training sessions promoting a substance free workplace to teach people
about the drug and alcohol policy and procedures are held. The sessions are
supplemented with a reporting system that enables workers to confidentially report
situations that they believe involve substance use in the workplace. However, the
workshops can present the policy and procedures as a component of a larger
healthy workplace program that ties substance abuse and increased injury rates
together. In this way, each workshop addressing a healthy workplace initiative also
reinforces a substance free workplace.
Proving Managerial Commitment
The benefits of having an open, integrated and well-transmitted set of policies and
procedures are many. It shows a managerial commitment to workplace health and
safety. A comprehensive health policy and program that includes a drug and alcohol
component also shows there are expectations as to worker behaviours and personal
responsibilities. Health and safety training promotes organisation-wide solutions to
problems and holds everyone more accountable for their actions and the actions of
co-workers.2 Business processes can be enhanced by improving worker
productivity.
There are direct and indirect ways to discuss the dangers of substance abuse.
Employers can directly talk about them in separate sessions and indirectly keep the
information in the forefront by incorporating the information in other health and
safety training sessions. A poster in the lunch room promoting a healthy diet or
regular exercise can just as easily promote substance free living.
The drug testing program can rely on quality drug test kits and alcohol test from
CMM Technology (cmm.com.au). Companies investing in reliable testing equipment
prove their commitment to maintaining a healthy and safe workplace.
This article has been taken from : http://www.cmm.com.au/articles/healthylifestyles-education-contributes-to-substance-free-workplace/