Weighing the Costs: Drug Testing Pros and Cons to Consider
Unfortunately, illicit drug use remains a huge problem in our society. A 2018 study found that almost 1 in 5 of those surveyed had used an illegal substance in the past year.
As an employer, the last thing you want is to employ a drug user. Someone who regularly ingests these harmful substances could make dangerous mistakes on the job, as well as hurt the reputation of your firm.
One way to ensure this doesn’t happen is to introduce a policy of drug testing in the workplace.
Read on as we look at drug testing pros and cons, and whether a drug testing policy could help to preserve the integrity of your business.
Pros of Drug Testing
There are many advantages to a fair drug testing policy in the workplace. We’ve outlined a few of the most important here.
Safety
If your business involves potential threats to employee safety (construction, for example) you cannot afford to take the risk that employees are coming to work under the influence of illicit substances. If they do, the risk of accidents increases significantly.
The only way to ensure that your employees, and the general public, are kept safe from this risk is to introduce drug testing.
Reputation
A reputation that you’ve spent years building can be destroyed very quickly by the careless actions of one employee. Nothing is more damaging to a company’s reputation than an incident involving drug use.
A solid testing protocol will make it clear to the world that your company does not tolerate drug use.
Performance
A workforce will never be at its most productive when certain members are using drugs. Unfortunately, given the pervasive drug culture in this country, some users are going to end up in every workforce at some point.
Testing is the only way to ensure that this drain on productivity is kept to a minimum.
Peace of Mind
There are many steps you can take to encourage a drug-free workplace. However, the only way to be certain that your employees are sober at work is to introduce drug testing.
Cons of Drug Testing
Many people dismiss drug testing, saying that it causes more harm than good. We’ve looked at a couple of the reasons for this here.
Breakdown of Trust
Some say that drug testing leads to bad feeling between employees and employers due to a perceived lack of trust.
The way to overcome this is through communication. Let your workers know that testing is simply an unfortunate necessity, and that honest employees have nothing to fear.
Cost
Some commentators question whether drug testing represents value for money.
However, this is a misleading argument. Drug testing may not have a measurable return on investment, but the risk of not having it far outweighs the cost of getting it.
Balancing Drug Testing Pros and Cons to Keep Your Business Healthy
When considering drug testing pros and cons, the prosperity of your business must always be your first consideration. While you may be met with some opposition, drug testing is the only way to ensure a safe, drug-free workplace.
If you’d like to learn more about our drug-testing solutions, contact us today.
