The use of illegal drugs and the abuse of alcohol is a serious problem in this country’s workforce, resulting in companies losing millions of dollars annually due to accidents, physical and mental impairments, absenteeism, and all forms of errors that are attributable to drug and excessive alcohol consumption. Our company has a responsibility for, and commitment to, providing its employees with a safe secure, and productive workplace.

 

While there is no reason to believe that there is a greater incidence of illegal drug use or alcohol abuse among Northwest Traffic Control, LLC employees than in any other Company, this is a subject in which can no longer be ignored or treated in a casual manner.  We are committed to policies and procedures, which will virtually eliminate illegal drug use and the abuse of alcohol, by any of our employees.

 

It is a proven statistic that employees in the American Workplace who use illegal drugs or abuse alcohol cause forty-seven percent (47%) of all industrial injuries.  Persons who are employed by Northwest Traffic Control, LLC have a right to a safe and secure workplace.  Moreover, all of the employees who work here must depend daily upon the performance of others for their health, safety, and welfare and to be assisted in their assignments by a reliable and productive workforce. 

 

As a result, Northwest Traffic Control, LLC has established a comprehensive drug and alcohol abuse prevention program which is humane, responsible, and effective.  In recognition that employees who use drugs or abuse alcohol are responsible for changing their behavior, and therefore, the Company will provide information regarding the Company’s Employee Assistance Program. However, when appropriate, there will be mandatory observed drug testing and disciplinary action.  This will be a balanced program that emphasizes offering a helping hand to employees who are using illegal drugs or abusing alcohol and seek assistance while, at the same time, it must be clear that illegal drug use or alcohol abuse by employees will not be tolerated. Northwest Traffic Control, LLC has a responsibility to its customers, workers, and the general public to provide service in a safe and conscientious manner.  

 

To achieve as safe a workplace as possible, employees must be free from the effects of alcohol and controlled substances (drugs) that impair job performance.  This does not include controlled substances prescribed by a licensed medical practitioner and used according to instructions.  In this regard alcohol and controlled substances, the testing program is being established.

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The purpose of this administrative guide is to set forth the procedures for the implementation of controlled substances and alcohol use testing of applicants and current employees. Violation of this policy may result in termination due to misconduct. Neither this policy nor any of its terms are intended to create a contract of employment or to contain the terms of any contract of employment.

 

Policy Establishment

 

Therefore, Northwest Traffic Control, LLC (hereafter referred to as the Company) is implementing the following drug and alcohol testing program with the provisions contained in this substance abuse policy. 

 

Program Information

 

Any employee of the Company who has questions regarding the provisions of this policy should directly obtain those answers or information from:

 

Designated Employee Representative:  Carlette Rice (208)762-8897   carlette@nwtrafficcontrol.net   

 

Located at:   11497 N Reed Road, Hayden, ID 83835

                  

Employees may obtain information regarding the effects of alcohol misuse and controlled substances use on an individual’s health, work, and personal life; signs and symptoms of an alcohol or substance abuse problem from the Company’s contact persons, as listed above.  Information is also available regarding methods of intervening when alcohol and/or controlled substance problem is suspected.

 

Definitions of Terms:

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For the purposes of this policy, the following definition of terms is provided:

 

Alcohol:  Means ethyl alcohol (ethanol).  References to use or possession of alcohol include use or possession of any beverage, mixture, or preparation containing alcohol.

 

Controlled Substances:  Means any substance (other than alcohol but including prescription medicine) that has known mind-or function-altering effects that may impair or affect the ability to perform work, the access to which is controlled by law.

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Illegal drugs:  Any form of drug, narcotic, hallucinogen, depressant, stimulant, cannabis or other substance capable of creating or maintaining impairment or otherwise affecting one’s physical, emotional or mental state, the sale, purchase, transfer, use, or possession of which is prohibited by law.

 

Employee: means a person, whether full-time, part-time, temporary, on-call, regular, introductory, or otherwise, of the Company, including any agency and instrumentality of the Company.

 

Company premises: The Company premises include all Company property, facilities, parking lots, garages, workplaces, storage structures, vehicles, and equipment owned or leased by the Company.

 

Under the influence: Any detectable level of alcohol, illegal drugs, or controlled substances in an employee’s sample reported by the laboratory.

 

Reasonable suspicion: An observation or observations of an employee’s condition or performance that indicates controlled substance, illegal drug, or alcohol use that may impair an employee’s faculties.  Examples include altered work performance, appearance (including, for example, a noticeable odor of an alcoholic beverage or marijuana), behavior or speech or involvement in or in relation to an accident, incident, or “near miss” while in the course and scope of employment that results in or has the potential to result in physical injury or property damage. 

 

Random testing: Testing conducted on a neutral selection basis with all employees subject to testing having an equal chance of being selected.

 

Last Chance Agreement: A requirement for employees who have violated the Company’s substance abuse policy to continue employment subject to the condition that no further violation of the Company’s policy will be tolerated.  The employee will be subject to return-to-duty testing, follow-up random testing, and successful completion of all required counseling, including mandatory Substance Abuse Professional (SAP) evaluation and completed recommended treatment.

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Prohibited Conduct

 

Possession, distribution, purchase, or use of alcoholic beverages, illegal drugs, or the improper use of other drugs during working hours, on Company property, or on a job site is strictly prohibited. The use of alcoholic beverages on company property or at any Company function is strictly prohibited unless prior authorization is given by Company officials.  Employees shall not report for duty or remain on duty if they are under the influence of controlled substances, except when the use is pursuant to the instructions of a licensed physician.  Any employee who is found to be in violation of this prohibition will be subject to termination.

 

Any employee convicted of a criminal drug statute outside the workplace may give Company officials reason to suspect the use of illegal drugs, and therefore, may request that employee immediately submit to taking a drug test.

 

Self Referral and Rehabilitation

 

If during the course of employment, the employee acknowledges a substance abuse problem and requests assistance, the Company will require the employee to seek an evaluation and possible treatment from a Substance Abuse Professional (SAP).

 

The decision to seek diagnosis and accept treatment is the responsibility of the employee.  A request for rehabilitation may not be made in order to avoid the consequence of a positive test result or to avoid taking a drug or alcohol test when directed to do so.

 

The employee will be suspended without pay until the company receives medical certification from the Substance Abuse Professional that the drug/alcohol dependency has been eliminated.  The employee may or may not be eligible to return back to his/or her position depending upon the circumstances, the completion and outcome of their treatment program and/or recommendation of the Substance Abuse Professional. If the employee returns to their position, he/she must also consent to periodic observed drug testing to confirm that drug/alcohol use by the employee has not resumed.  Any employee returning to work after treatment will be expected to comply with all aspects of this drug/alcohol testing policy.

 

If an employee believes they need assistance, all discussions will be held in the strictest confidence unless authorized in writing by the employee.  An employee’s decision to seek help for an alcohol or controlled substance problem on their own, will not be used as a basis for this policy’s disciplinary action.  However, this company must maintain a safe and productive workplace for all employees as well as their customers. 

 

 

Inspections, Searches, and Investigations

 

The Company reserves the right to inspect and/or search all Company property, as well as any employee’s personal property on Company premises, for alcohol, controlled substances or illegal drugs.  Refusal to submit to any search or refusal to cooperate in any investigation is considered to be a serious violation of this policy and will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including termination.

 

Prescription Drugs

 

An employee’s use of prescription or over-the-counter medicine can pose a significant risk to the safety of the employee and of others.  Employees must report the use of medically authorized drugs or other substances that may impair job performance to their immediate supervisor and may be required to provide appropriate written medical authorization from a physician to work while using such authorized drug.  Failure to report the use of such drugs or other substances, or failure to provide evidence of medical authorization, is considered to be a serious violation of this policy.  Employees are warned not to misuse prescribed medications or use any other person’s prescribed medication. 

 

“Fitness for Duty” Notification

 

If a person self-discloses prescription drug use and cannot produce “fitness for duty” documentation, the individual will not be allowed to drive a Company vehicle and/or perform a “safety-sensitive” job duty until such time that a medical provider and employee provide satisfactory documentation to support safe operation.  The supervisor shall not approve an employee to drive a personal vehicle on Company business until the above procedures are followed and resolved.

 

Alcohol Use and/or Misuse

 

Employees are not permitted to report to work with a blood alcohol concentration of .02 or greater.  Any employee who reports to work with a blood alcohol concentration level between 0.02 and 0.039 will not be permitted to perform his/her safety-sensitive function until 24 hours after the administration of the test.  If this should happen twice in the same year, additional disciplinary action will be taken.  Any employee tested who is found to have an alcohol concentration of 0.04 or greater is considered to be under the influence and in violation of this policy.  Alcohol testing will be conducted by only the use of an Evidential Breath Testing (EBT) device or approved saliva test.  All “positive” alcohol tests must be confirmed with a print-out from an Evidential Breath Testing device.  Employees shall not report for duty within four hours after using alcohol. An employee must not consume alcohol while on duty time, four hours prior to on-duty time, and up to eight hours following an accident or until the employee undergoes a post-accident test, whichever occurs first and/or as required under “Post Accident” testing.

 

Initial Baseline

 

Northwest Traffic Control, LLC will initiate the provisions of this policy at any time following the effective date of the policy which may include all current employees being required to submit to testing for the presence of illegal drugs and/or alcohol.

 

Urinalysis will be conducted to detect the presence of the following controlled substances:

 

• Marijuana (THC)

• Cocaine

• Opiates

• Amphetamines

• Phencyclidine (PCP)

• Methamphetamine

 

Detection levels requiring a determination of a positive result shall be in accordance with the guidelines adopted by the Department of Transportation (DOT).

 

The company reserves the right to use other FDA-approved methods of conducting drug testing, such as; saliva testing or hair testing if the company determines a certain situation constitutes alternative types of testing.  If the company requests either saliva testing or hair testing, either specimen would be forwarded to a DHHS-certified laboratory to conduct the appropriate testing of such specimens.

 

 

Pre-Employment Testing

 

All applicants will be subject to a pre-employment drug test as part of Northwest Traffic Control, LLC’s application process for employment.  All final applicants receiving job offers for any position will have job offers conditioned upon satisfactorily passing, or receiving a “negative” pre-employment drug test result.  Applicants with positive drug testing results will not be hired and may not apply or be considered for employment until the donor can show proof that they have obtained an evaluation by a Substance Abuse Professional (SAP), and can provide proof of successfully completing any recommended treatment by an SAP.   Applicants who are offered employment must appear at the testing facility within twenty-four (24) hours of the initial notice.  Failure to comply will result in withdrawal of the job offer.

 

Random Testing

 

All employees will be subject to randomly selected or unannounced controlled substance testing.  The Company contracts with an outside agency to randomly select employees for testing.  Selections will be made through the use of a computer-based number generated program.  All employees in the random pool have an equal chance of being selected each time a selection is made.  The supervisor must ensure that the employee reports to the designated testing site immediately when the employee has been notified.

 

Post Accident Testing

 

Any accident or incident, (with or without injury), occurring on Company property or happening on a job site, on company time, and/or in a Company vehicle must be immediately reported to his/her supervisor. Failing to report such accidents may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination.  All employees involved in or may have contributed to an accident as defined in this policy must be tested for alcohol and controlled substances as soon as practicable following the accident.  An accident is defined as a sudden and tangible happening that results in the death of a human being; an injury requiring immediate medical treatment; any vehicle involved is disabled (tow-away); and/or damage to company property having an estimated cost of $500.00 or more to repair; and/or an employee is likely to file a worker’s compensation claim. 

 

Reasonable Suspicion

 

Whenever the Company reasonably suspects that an employee’s work performance or on-the-job behavior may be affected in any way by alcohol or drugs, or that an employee has otherwise violated this policy, the Company will require the employee to participate in a breath and/or urine screening test within two (2) hours of the reasonable suspicion determination.  Reasonable suspicion should be based on a specific event, contemporaneous, articulable observations concerning the appearance, behavior, speech, or body odors of the employee.  An employee may be asked to submit to a drug and/or alcohol test as a result of reasonable suspicion. Supervisors shall keep documentation as to how and why the determination was made to conduct a drug and or alcohol test under reasonable suspicion.    All employees identified to take a drug or alcohol test may be suspended with or without pay until test results are received.

 

Alcohol and Controlled Substance Testing

 

Only qualified, certified medical and laboratory trained personnel will conduct alcohol tests, urine specimen collections, and laboratory analyses.  The laboratory used will be certified by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS).  All alcohol tests will be conducted by a trained Breath Alcohol Technician (BAT) using an approved evidential breath testing device (EBT) or saliva testing.  Each initial test indicating an alcohol concentration of 0.02 or above, will undergo a second confirmation test.  Each initial test for controlled substances indicating a positive result will undergo a second confirmation test using the gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) technique to ensure the validity of the initial screening result.  Employees will have his/her urine specimen sealed in a container with both being sent to a SAMHSA-certified laboratory for testing.  If an employee has been notified of a positive test result by the Medical Review Officer, the employee may request the same specimen to be tested a second time at a separate SAMHSA-certified laboratory at his/her expense.  The MRO (Medical Review Officer) must be notified of this request within three (3) days. The individual will be suspended without pay during the time the second specimen is being tested.  If that specimen is reported back as negative, the individual will be given back pay for the time of suspension.

 

If a specimen is discovered to be insufficient (amount) or diluted (specific gravity less than 1.003 and creatinine less than .2 g/l), the Company would require that employee to remain at the collection site to give another sample that same day with the appropriate creatinine level to proceed with the test.  If it is late in the day the employee will be sent back the following morning to the same or another designated testing site to provide a second sample within 24 hours.  The employee will be directed to refrain from consuming excessive amounts of fluids prior to taking the second test. If the sample is still diluted or insufficient, or if the employee does not stay to provide another sample, then further appropriate corrective or disciplinary action will take place.

 

In the event that a drug test is reported as an “invalid” result, the company shall request the donor to immediately submit to retesting under “direct observation”.

 

Refusal

 

An employee who refuses to submit to a drug or alcohol test when asked to do so by the Company will be considered as the equivalency of testing positive and even more, an act of insubordination subject to disciplinary action up to, and including termination.  

 

Behavior that constitutes as a refusal to submit to a test includes:

 

1. Employee refuses to complete and sign the Breath Alcohol Testing form.

2. Employee refuses to provide an adequate amount of breath for alcohol testing unless a doctor determines the failure is due or probably due to a medical condition.

3. Employee fails to provide a urine specimen.

4. Employee fails to cooperate with the testing process in a way that prevents the completion of the test.

5. Employee is found tampering with, and/or attempting to adulterate the specimen or to be found Interfering with the collection procedure.

6. Employee does not immediately report to the collection site as required.

 

As a condition of employment, all employees must abide by the provisions of this policy.

 

Disciplinary Actions / Effects of Positive Testing

 

Any applicant who tests positive for illegal drug use and/or alcohol on a Pre-Employment test will not be offered employment with the Company (See “Pre-Employment Testing” for details).

 

An employee who is in violation of any provision of this Policy and/or tests positive for illegal drugs and/or alcohol the first time will not be terminated solely for such violation, but will be offered the opportunity to retain their job, subject to the terms written in the Company’s “Last Chance Agreement”.

 

Managers or supervisors who have knowledge of an employee who is in violation of this policy shall not permit that employee to work.

 

Last Chance Agreement

 

The “Last Chance Agreement” is a written agreement between the Company and the employee who has tested positive for illegal drugs and/or alcohol, or has been found in violation of Company policy.  This agreement outlines the terms and conditions of continued employment in which that employee shall comply. 

 

This agreement must be signed by both, the employee, and the Company before the employee can return back to work. The SAP will advise the Company if an employee is not compliant with the requirements of the Last-Chance Agreement, including ongoing treatment and continuing care recommendations.

 

Follow Up Testing

 

Before an employee can return to duty after engaging in conduct in violation of the Company’s substances abuse policy, the employee must take a Return-to-duty drug and/or alcohol test in which the results must conclude negatively.

 

When an employee has engaged in conduct that is in violation of the Company’s policy, that employee would immediately be suspended from duty, and must first obtain an evaluation by a Substance Abuse Professional (S.A.P.).  Following the evaluation and SAP’s recommendation for treatment, the employee must take and pass the “Return-To-Duty” test, before being allowed to return to their duty.  Employees are subject to “Follow-up testing for a maximum of three years with a minimum of 6 unannounced drugs and/or alcohol tests being conducted during the first 12 months after returning to work and a minimum of 4 tests during the second year.  Thereafter, the number will be based on the recommendation of the SAP.

 

Reporting and Confidentiality

 

Since alcohol and controlled substance test results are considered confidential information, each employee will be required to sign an authorization for the test results and any evaluations to be released to the Medical Review Officer (MRO), any approved regulatory third party administrator, and/or a designated Company official.  All employee information relating to the alcohol and controlled substances program will be maintained in a secure location with access restricted.  The release of information to a third party will be pursuant to a written release signed voluntarily by the employee unless required by proper legal authority. 

 

The laboratory shall report test results within an average of 1-2 working days after receipt of the specimen by the laboratory.

The MRO shall report to the Company whether the test is positive or negative, and will report the drug(s) for which there was a positive test.

 

Prior to making a final decision to verify a positive test result for an individual, the MRO shall give the individual the opportunity to discuss the test result with him or her.  The MRO shall attempt to contact the individual to determine whether the employee wishes to discuss the test results. 

 

If the MRO reasonably tries to contact the individual directly and is unable to reach the individual, the MRO may contact a Company official who shall direct the employee to contact the MRO promptly.

 

Summary of Prohibited Activities

 

Northwest Traffic Control, LLC’s drug and alcohol policy prohibits the following:

 

1. Use, possession, manufacturing, distribution, dispensation, or sale of illegal drugs or drug paraphernalia.

2. Unauthorized use or possession, or any manufacture, distribution, dispensation, or sale of controlled substances.

3. Unauthorized use, manufacture, distribution, dispensation, or possession or any sale of alcohol on Company premises or Company business, in Company supplied vehicles, or during working hours.

4. Storing in a locker, desk, automobile, or another repository on Company premises any illegal drug, drug paraphernalia, or any controlled substance whose use is unauthorized.

5. Being under the influence of an unauthorized controlled substance, illegal drugs or alcohol on Company premises or Company business, in Company supplied vehicles, or during working hours.  (Being “under the influence” means a blood alcohol content of .04 percent or a positive test result for drugs).

6. The possession of alcohol by a Company employee driver while on duty unless part of a manifested shipment for transportation.

7. Use of alcohol by an employee within eight (8) hours after a reportable accident or until the “Post Accident” test has been administered (or whichever comes first).

8. Switching or adulterating any urine sample submitted for testing.

9. Refusing to consent to test or to submit to a breath, saliva, urine sample for testing when required by Company policy.

10. Refusing to submit to an inspection when requested by management.

11. Failing to adhere to the requirements of any drug or alcohol treatment or counseling program in which the employee is enrolled.

12. Conviction under any criminal drug or alcohol statute;

13. Arrest under any criminal drug statute under circumstances that would adversely affect the Company’s regard or reputation in the community.

14. Failure to notify the Company of any conviction under any criminal drug statute under circumstances, which adversely affect the Company’s regard or reputation in the community.

15. Failure to report to management the use of a prescribed drug may alter the employee’s behavior or physical or mental ability.

16. Refusal to complete the toxicology chain of custody form after submission of a urine sample.

17. Failure to notify your Department Manager, Human Resource/Personnel Manager, or some other available manager of your involvement in an accident causing property damage or personal injury as soon as possible, but in no event later than the end of your shift unless the circumstances make this impossible.

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