The Controversies Behind Workplace Drug Testing
Workplace drug testing has been around for some time now, but controversies continue to hound it. These controversies are hardly surprising. Workplace drug testing, after all, will always be a contentious matter because it essentially triggers a collision between the interests of the worker and the interests of the employer. Employers want them done in the name of workplace health and safety and business productivity, while workers typically cry invasion of privacy and dignity robbery when forced to undergo workplace drug testing. (more…)
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Let’s face it — there is a significant degree of resistance to drug testing in the workplace. More often than not, this opposition to workplace drug testing revolves around privacy issues. Many workers claim that drug tests that rely on drawing blood, urine, or even saliva samples are a clear invasion of their privacy, and they are more likely to file cases against their employers because of these tests.
Much of the opposition to workplace drug testing is centred on the invasive nature of blood tests and, to a lesser extent, saliva tests. Citing privacy laws, many employees oppose drug testing in the workplace, and in some cases, even bring their employers to court to dispute anything that results from those drug tests.