[Adopted 1-10-1996 by Ord. No. 430-95; amended in its entirety 1-22-1997 by Ord. No. 455-96]
The Municipality of Murrysville has a commitment
to provide a safe and healthy workplace for its employees and to ensure
efficient delivery of services to the public. The Municipality recognized
that, in order to accomplish this goal, it must implement programs
that will enable the Municipality to achieve its objectives in a cost-effective
manner, while respecting the rights of its employees. Statistics show
that employees who are substance abusers are absent from work approximately
three times more often than are other employees, are about 1/3 less
productive when they are at work and are twice as likely as others
to have accidents in the workplace. Statistics indicate that such
employees also are more likely to experience serious medical and emotional
problems and to disregard safety policies and procedures. With this
in mind, the Municipality must make every reasonable attempt to establish
a work environment that is free, directly and indirectly, from the
adverse effects of drug and alcohol abuse.
The general objectives of the Municipality in
adopting this resolution and policy include the following:
A.
No employee of the Municipality shall use, consume,
possess, sell, distribute or receive alcohol and/or illegal drugs
or substances at any time or at any place while engaged in the course
of his or her employment. No employee of the Municipality of Murrysville
shall distribute or sell prescription drugs at any time or at any
place while engaged in the course of his or her employment. Violation
of these rules by an employee shall subject the employee to discipline,
up to and including discharge, subject to applicable provisions and
procedures of a collective bargaining agreement. Illegal drugs and
prohibited substances shall include prescription medication for which
the employee does not have a valid prescription.
B.
The Municipality of Murrysville reserves the right,
upon reasonable suspicion or other good cause, to search municipal
property situated upon its premises and made available for use by
its employees.
C.
Any employee refusing to consent or cooperate with
a reasonable search or investigation will be relieved of duty and
removed from municipal property or workplace and will be subject to
discipline, up to and including discharge, for insubordination.
D.
Prescription drugs and medications should be kept
in their original container identifying the drug, dosage, date of
prescription and physician. Employees shall notify their foreman or
supervisor if they are taking prescription medications which might
impair the employee's working ability or alertness.
E.
Employees are also expected not to engage in any off-duty
or off-premises drug- or alcohol-related conduct which may affect
their work performance.
The Municipality hereby accepts its obligations
under the Omnibus Transportation Employee Testing Act of 1991 (Act)
and regulations of the United States Department of Transportation
(DOT) as they may be amended. The regulations and Act require drug
and alcohol testing of those employees of the Municipality holding
commercial driver's licenses and those persons applying for positions
requiring such licenses. This resolution is adopted to implement a
policy required under said DOT regulations as presently found in 49
CFR Part 40, which shall apply without being fully recited herein.
DOT regulations establish procedures governing the conduct of breath
alcohol testing (BAT), including screening and confirmation tests
under said regulations' standards to be followed by BAT technicians
conducting tests under said regulations. The Municipality expects
that breath alcohol technicians will conduct tests and their operations
in accordance with applicable DOT regulations.
The Municipality hereby establishes a mandatory
drug and alcohol testing program as is required under DOT regulations
and the Omnibus Transportation Employee Testing Act of 1991. This
policy shall apply to all employees of the Municipality holding commercial
driver's licenses and to all persons applying for employment positions
with the Municipality which require commercial driver's licenses.
Testing shall include breath alcohol and urine testing. Testing samples
shall be analyzed for at least the following substances: alcohol,
marijuana (THC metabolite), cocaine, amphetamines, opiates (including
heroin) and phenyencyclidine (PCP), subject to future amendment of
DOT regulations. All such testing shall be conducted in accordance
with the provisions of this policy.
Drug and alcohol testing required under this
policy shall be as follows:
A.
Preemployment testing. All applicants for employment
positions with the Municipality shall be tested for alcohol and drugs
prior to commencing employment with the Municipality. A driver applicant
testing positive for alcohol or drugs will not be considered for employment
with the Municipality.
B.
Random testing. Each year commencing in 1996, the
Municipality shall use a random process based upon social security
numbers to select at least 50% of its employees holding commercial
driver's licenses (CDL drivers), who shall be tested for the use of
controlled substances. This shall be administered by a third party.
Additionally, at least 25% of municipal CDL drivers shall be randomly
tested for alcohol use in the first year of this policy. The annual
alcohol testing rate in future years shall, under DOT regulations,
be based upon the percentage of violations (defined as alcohol tests
0.04% or greater and refusals to test) in the preceding year, such
rate to be either 10%, 25% or 50%. Drivers selected on a random basis
for drug abuse testing shall be required to supply a urine sample.
Drivers selected on a random basis for alcohol testing shall be required
to undergo breath alcohol testing. Notification of random testing
will be given to employees immediately prior to the testing; should
an employee not be present at the time he or she is selected, notification
will be given to the employee upon his or her return to the workplace.
C.
Periodic testing. Should annual or periodic medical
examinations of CDL drivers become mandatory, the Municipality will
test each driver for drug and/or alcohol use during such annual or
periodic medical examinations.
D.
Reasonable suspicion testing. Reasonable suspicion
testing shall be conducted when a trained supervisor observes behavior
or appearance of an employee subject to this policy which is characteristic
of drug or alcohol misuse. Conduct giving rise to reasonable suspicion
under this subsection must be witnessed by two supervisors of the
employee who have received training in detection of probability of
drug or alcohol use by observation of a person's behavior. However,
if only one supervisor is available, only that supervisor need witness
the conduct.
E.
Mandatory post-accident testing. Drivers shall be
subject to drug and alcohol testing as soon as is practicable after
a commercial vehicle accident. For purposes of this subsection, an
accident is defined as a collision involving either a fatality; bodily
injury to any person which requires that person to be transported
from the collision scene for medical treatment; damage to any vehicle
which requires that vehicle to be towed from the scene; or the driver's
receipt of a citation for a moving violation of state or local law
arising from the collision. In no case shall an alcohol test required
under this subsection be conducted later than eight hours after the
collision, nor shall a drug test required under this subsection be
conducted later than 32 hours after the collision. No driver subject
to testing under this subsection shall consume alcohol from the time
of the incident until such time as the tests required have been conducted.
If, as a consequence of a collision, a CDL driver is seriously injured
and cannot provide a specimen at the time of the collision as set
forth above, the employee must provide the necessary authorization
to the Municipality to obtain hospital records and other documents
which would indicate whether there were any prohibited substances
or alcohol in the employee's system at the time of the collision and/or
post-collision testing.
F.
Follow-up testing. Any CDL driver who has returned
to duty after a positive alcohol or drug test shall be subject to
unannounced follow-up drug and alcohol testing for a period of up
to 60 months following the employee's return to duty. A minimum of
six unannounced follow-up tests must be conducted in the first 12
months after the employee returns to duty, and the Mayor or designee
may require unannounced follow-up tests continuing for a period up
to 60 months following the employee's return to duty.
G.
Return to duty testing. Should the Municipality offer
a CDL driver reemployment or a return to duty after the CDL driver
has been referred to an alcohol and/or substance abuse professional
for treatment and the CDL driver has participated in all recommended
treatment, the CDL driver shall be tested for alcohol and prohibited
substances prior to being returned to duty and, to be eligible to
return to duty and employment, the CDL driver must test negative for
both alcohol and prohibited substances.
Employees shall appear at the proper facility
and submit for testing required under this policy within two hours
after being notified that they are obligated to submit for such random,
reasonable suspicion, post-accident, follow-up or return to duty testing.
A.
Refusal by an employee to submit to drug and alcohol
testing required under this policy shall subject the employee to discipline,
up to and including discharge, at the discretion of the Mayor.
B.
Refusal by an employee to submit to testing required
under this policy shall be deemed to include any act or omission which
prevents, thwarts or frustrates the objectives of this policy and
the requirements imposed under DOT regulations, including but not
limited to the following: refusal to submit in timely fashion to testing
as required under this policy; refusal or failure by the employee
to complete, sign or initial the required breath alcohol testing form;
refusal or failure without good cause to provide breath; refusal or
failure without good cause to provide an adequate amount of breath
to allow proper testing; and/or failure or refusal to otherwise cooperate
with the testing process in a way which prevents the completion of
the test.
C.
In accordance with 49 CFR 40.69, should the Municipality
be advised that a CDL employee has attempted and failed to provide
an adequate amount of breath, the Chief Administrator or his/her designee
shall direct the employee to obtain, as soon as practical after the
attempted provision of breath, an evaluation from a licensed physician
who is acceptable to the Board, concerning the employee's medical
ability to provide an adequate amount of breath.
(1)
If the physician determines, in his or her reasonable
medical judgment, that a medical condition has or, with a high degree
of probability, could have precluded the employee from providing an
adequate amount of breath, the employee's failure to provide an adequate
amount of breath shall not be deemed a refusal to take a test. The
physician shall provide to the Municipality a written statement of
the basis for his or her conclusion.
(2)
If the licensed physician, in his or her reasonable
medical judgment, is unable to make the determination set forth above,
the employee's failure to provide an adequate amount of breath shall
be regarded by the Municipality as a refusal to take a test, in which
event the employee shall be subject to discipline up to and including
discharge for refusal to submit to testing. The licensed physician
shall provide to the Municipality a written statement of the basis
for his or her conclusion.
The Municipality hereby adopts for use in conducting
the drug and alcohol testing program established under this policy
such forms as are prescribed by the United States Department of Transportation
and/or licensed testing establishments.
A.
Should an employee's behavior or appearance suggest
to his or her supervisor misuse of alcohol or prohibited substances
and a test cannot be administered immediately, the employee shall
be removed from performing safety-sensitive duties for at least eight
hours, and for 24 hours in the case of CDL drivers.
B.
Employees who have any alcohol concentration (defined
as 0.02% or greater) in their breath when tested just before, during
or after performing safety-sensitive functions shall be removed from
performing such duties for eight hours and, in the case of CDL drivers,
for at least 24 hours, or until another breath test is administered
and the result is less than 0.02%.
C.
Should a CDL driver's test results be positive for
alcohol and/or drugs, the employee shall not engage in the following
activities until such time as the employee submits to another test
which indicates the absence of alcohol and prohibited substances in
the employee's system: operate commercial vehicles, load or unload
commercial vehicles, ride in a commercial vehicle or repair a commercial
vehicle.
The Chief Administrator shall notify its CDL
drivers and driver-applicants of the results of tests conducted pursuant
to this policy. Those persons testing positive for alcohol and/or
prohibited substances shall also be advised specifically as to what
drugs or amount of alcohol was or were discovered present in their
system in the testing.
Whenever a CDL employee subject to this policy
receives a prescription, a form should be completed by the employee's
attending or prescribing physician and provided to the employee, stating
whether or not the prescribed medication will affect the individual's
driving ability and whether the prescribed medication would appear
or be reflected on a drug test.
An employee whose results of drug and alcohol
testing under this policy establish existence in the employee's body
system of 0.04% alcohol content or of a prohibited drug or substance
shall be deemed to have violated the municipal policy regarding alcohol
and drug abuse. Upon the first such positive test result, an employee
shall be referred to mandatory alcohol and/or drug rehabilitation
treatment. An employee who participates as required in such treatment
program and who successfully completes follow-up or return to duty
testing shall be returned to employment without further discipline.
An employee who refuses or fails to participate as required in referred
rehabilitation treatment shall be subject to further discipline, up
to and including discharge, and shall not be returned to duty. Any
further instance of positive test results for alcohol and/or prohibited
substances as defined above or an employee's failure to submit to
testing as defined above shall subject the employee to discipline,
up to and including discharge.
A.
All records relating to administration and results
of the municipal alcohol and drug testing program shall be maintained
by the Municipality for a minimum of five years, subject to the requirements
of 49 CFR 40.83.
B.
The Municipality shall retain a Medical Review Officer,
who shall be a licensed doctor of medicine or osteopathy with knowledge
of drug abuse disorders, to interpret results of alcohol and drug
testing in accordance with DOT regulations.
C.
The Chief Administrator shall be the sole custodian
of individual test results and shall retain reports of test results
for a minimum of five years.
D.
The Chief Administrator shall retain in a CDL driver's
personnel file information indicating only the following: that the
employee submitted to a drug and/or alcohol test; the date of such
test; the location of such test; the identity of the person or entity
performing the test; and whether the test finding was "positive" or
"sub-negative."
E.
The Chief Administrator shall also maintain on a calendar
year summary of the records related to the administration and results
of the testing program for its drivers under DOT regulations.
No person may obtain the individual test results
retained by the Chief Administrator, and no results shall be released
to any person or entity without first receiving written authorization
from the tested individual unless otherwise required by law.
A.
The Municipality of Murrysville shall establish an
employee assistance program which shall include the following:
(1)
An educational and training component for drivers,
addressing alcohol and controlled or prohibited substances.
(2)
An educational and training component for supervisory
personnel, addressing alcohol and controlled substances.
(3)
A written statement on file and available for inspection,
outlining the Municipal Employee Assistance Program.
B.
The Employee Assistance Training Program for all CDL
drivers and supervisory personnel will consist of at least 60 minutes
of training, and the training program shall include the following
elements:
(1)
Effects and consequences of alcohol and/or controlled
substance use on personal health, safety and the work environment.
(2)
The manifestations and behavioral causes that may
indicate alcohol and/or controlled substance use or abuse.
(3)
Documentation of training given to drivers and supervisory
personnel.
This policy and other documents executed or
delivered pursuant to or in connection with this policy are not intended
to confer any contractual or other rights or claims in favor of the
employees. Any failure to implement the policy or any part thereof,
any variation, addition or omission to or of the procedures set forth
in the policy, shall not confer any contractual or other rights or
claims in favor of the employees which are not otherwise conferred
by law.
The Municipality reserves the right to add to,
change or modify this policy, at its sole discretion, and to discipline
or discharge any employee at any time, except if those rights are
restricted by law or by any applicable collective bargaining obligation
or agreement. The Municipality of Murrysville accepts no liability
in the event of any alleged breach of any of the procedures or provisions
set forth in this policy. The Municipality encourages every employee
to voluntarily comply with this policy, for his or her own safety
as well as the safety of others. Because of its importance, the Municipality
shall take all necessary steps to ensure implementation of compliance
with the policy.
This policy will be limited by any applicable
federal or state law or regulations, and by municipal ordinances,
and by applicable collective bargaining agreements. Any portion of
this policy which directly conflicts with such a law, ordinance, regulation
or agreement will not be implemented in that jurisdiction or bargaining
unit, but shall be severable and shall not affect the validity or
enforcement of the remainder of the policy.
