Don’t let the silly season bite your business

Published

With Christmas nearly upon us and New Year festivities just around the corner, it’s that time of the year again when employers cross their fingers and hope an incident isn’t just around the corner. But it’s not just drunken and lewd behaviour at parties you need to worry about; it’s also people turning up to work under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Here are some tips to protect yourself and your business from the dangers of people working while under the influence:

  • Most importantly, have a drug and alcohol management plan in place.
  • Implement drug and alcohol testing and make at least some of the testing random.
  • Educate your employees.
  • This education will include the risks of turning up to work under the influence, information about alcohol and drugs so employees can make informed choices, and a summary of your drug and alcohol management plan, including testing, so they understand their responsibilities and the risks if they do turn up to work under the influence.

Above all, don’t just stick your head in the sand and hope that drugs and alcohol won’t affect your workplace. With around one in five people admitting to turning up to work under the influence of alcohol, ignoring the potential risks is a strategy that will bite you in the end.

Implementing drug and alcohol testing can be even more important at this time of year

By Michael

Michael is the founder of Integrity Sampling and is responsible for overseeing all national operations. He is based at Integrity Sampling's head office in Melbourne and is also responsible for the co-ordination of drug and alcohol testing within Victoria, assisting in the implementation of drug and alcohol (fit for work) policies and the presentation of drug and alcohol education and awareness programs. You can connect with Michael Wheeldon on LinkedIn

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