[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Commissioners
of the Township of Patterson 9-14-2017. Amendments noted where applicable.]
A.
This document contains procedures for implementing a drug and alcohol
testing program at Patterson Township. Patterson Township prohibits
the use, possession, sale, purchase, manufacture, distribution, transfer
or consumption of alcohol and all illegal drugs, including legally
regulated drugs.
B.
This program applies to all employees and potential employees of
Patterson Township, including nonuniformed and uniformed (bargaining
unit) employees.
As used in this policy, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
Illegal substances, as defined by federal/state laws, including
but not limited to:
Patterson Township may retain a third-party administrator
to perform testing and reporting procedures.
A.
The policy of the Township is to maintain a workplace free from the
effects of drug and alcohol use so that employees are fit to perform
their work duties and report to work regularly and on time. As such,
the Township will not tolerate the manufacture, distribution, possession,
use or presence in the body of alcohol or any banned substance which
may impair safety or job performance of an employee. Specifically,
no employee shall:
(1)
Report to duty or remain on duty while having a blood alcohol concentration
of .02 or higher, or testing positive for any banned substance;
(2)
Use or possess alcohol or any banned substance while on duty;
(3)
Consume alcohol within four hours of reporting to work; or
(4)
Consume alcohol for at least eight hours after a work-related accident
requiring post-accident drug or alcohol testing or until such time
as post-accident testing is completed, whichever is earlier.
B.
Employees violating this policy will be subject to discipline, up
to and including discharge.
A urine, breath or blood drug screen shall be administered under
the following circumstances:
A.
Prehire Drug Screening. All offers of employment shall be conditioned
upon the applicant submitting to and passing a urine/blood drug screen.
Prehire drug screening will test for the presence of illegal drugs
and substances and the illegal use of prescription drugs. This screen
does not include an alcohol test. Applicants who refuse to submit
to this test or test positive will not be considered for employment
with Patterson Township.
B.
Testing for Cause. All employees shall be tested for cause when a
reasonable suspicion exists that the employee appears to be under
the influence of illegal drugs or illegally using prescription drugs,
synthetic drugs and/or alcohol.
C.
Causal/Incident-Related. All employees shall submit to a drug screen
as soon as possible after an accident or incident occurring in the
course and scope of employment. An "accident" is defined as involving:
D.
Reinstatement, Return-to-Duty and Follow-Up Testing. Any employee
who is disciplined for violation of this policy must submit to a drug
and alcohol test prior to being returned to duty and will be subject
to unannounced follow-up drug and alcohol tests for a period of up
to 60 months.
A.
Prehire drug testing.
(1)
Upon receiving an offer of employment, the applicant will be required
to undergo a drug screen.
(2)
Each applicant will read and sign a drug screen consent form[1] prior to any test being administered.
[1]
Editor's Note: The drug screen consent form is included as an attachment to this chapter.
(3)
The applicant will be provided with the third-party administrator
information and scheduled for a drug screen.
(4)
Any applicant who refuses to submit to a drug screen or tests positive
will not be eligible for employment.
(5)
Testing for certain substances.
B.
Testing for cause.
(1)
All employees working for the Township may be tested for illegal
drugs, substances, synthetic drugs and alcohol if there is reasonable
suspicion that the employee is under the influence of alcohol, any
of the banned substances, or abuse of prescription medication. For
the purpose of this program, the term "reasonable suspicion" shall
be defined as "aberrant behavior or unusual on-duty behavior" of an
individual employee who:
(a)
Is observed on duty by either the employee's immediate
supervisor, higher ranking employee, or other managerial personnel
(observations shall be documented by the observers);
(b)
Exhibits the type of behavior that shows accepted symptoms of
intoxication or impairment caused by controlled substances or alcohol
or addiction to or dependence upon said controlled substances; and
(c)
Such conduct cannot reasonably be explained by other causes
such as fatigue, lack of sleep, side effect of prescription or over-the-counter
medications, illness, reaction to noxious fumes or smoke.
(2)
Testing of this type will only be conducted with the approval of
the department head, Township Secretary or Township Commissioner.
The department head, Township Secretary or Commissioner must document
in writing who is to be tested and why the test was ordered, including
the specific objective facts constituting reasonable suspicion leading
to the test being ordered, and the name of any source(s) of this information.
The employee will be ordered to immediately submit to a drug and alcohol
screen. Refusal to submit to testing after being ordered to do so
may result in disciplinary action up to and including discharge.
(3)
Employee drug screens for cause will include testing for alcohol,
as well as the same drugs as the prehire screening test. Each employee
will read and execute a consent form[2] prior to any test being administered. Failure to execute
the consent form may result in disciplinary action up to and including
discharge.
[2]
Editor's Note: The drug screen consent form is included as an attachment to this chapter.
(4)
Reasonable suspicion testing shall be performed by a third-party
administrator approved by the Township. The individual will be immediately
accompanied to the clinic by a company representative. Samples will
be taken as per the prehire procedure.
(5)
If an employee's test is positive for drugs, he/she may not
return to work and will be subject to disciplinary action up to and
including discharge. The employee will be given a copy of the results
of the drug screen.
(6)
If an employee has a blood alcohol level of .02 or higher, he/she
may not return to work and will be subject to disciplinary action
up to and including discharge. The employee will be given a copy of
the results of the drug screen.
C.
Causal/Incident-Related Testing
(1)
Any employee involved in an accident as defined under this policy
shall provide a blood/breath/urine sample for drug and alcohol testing
as soon as possible after the accident.
(2)
An employee may not consume alcohol or illegal drugs for at least
eight hours after a work-related accident requiring post-accident
drug or alcohol testing or until such time as post-accident testing
is completed, whichever is earlier.
(3)
Required medical treatment or other emergency measures shall take
precedence over testing.
(4)
Refusal to submit to a test or interfering with the successful completion
of such a test shall be deemed a positive test result, and the employee
may be terminated.
D.
Drug and alcohol testing requirements for employees with commercial
driver's license (CDL)
(1)
The United States Department of Transportation (DOT) requires that
all employees maintaining a CDL and operating commercial motor vehicles
be subjected to the drug screen policies outlined in the "Testing
Procedures" section of this document. CDL employees, per the DOT,
are required to submit to a minimum five-panel drug screen for the
presence of:
(2)
A positive test result requires the employee to be immediately removed
from operating any commercial motor vehicles on public roadways. In
addition, employees whose test produces a positive result must complete
return-to-duty and follow-up testing after completion of an approved
rehabilitation program as prescribed by a substance abuse professional.
Follow-up testing must include a minimum of six unannounced, directly
observed drug screens within 12 months of the initial return-to-duty
screen.
Employee information, including drug screen results and rehabilitative
programs, will be treated as medical records and will remain strictly
confidential following HIPAA guidelines for patient confidentiality.
Employee requests to release the results of drug screens to any party
outside the company must be made in writing and given to the employee's
immediate supervisor and designated safety and health officer.
