Memorandum submitted by Medscreen
DRUGS AND ALCOHOL MISUSE
1. INTRODUCTION
Medscreen welcomes the opportunity to submit
evidence to the Trade and Industry Committee inquiry into the
UK construction industry.
2. Substance misuse is increasing in the
UK workplace and Medscreen has evidence that shows the UK non
regulated sector including construction is showing increasing
levels of positivity to drugs and alcohol in the work place.
There is a known link between substance misuse
and risk in the safety critical sector to which construction belongs.
This link threatens employment practices and health and safety
records of construction companies. There is credible evidence
from US and Australia, as well as anecdotal evidence from the
UK that the construction industry has a higher incidence of substance
misuse than other sectors. This is being actively addressed through
education, training and testing programmes. A number of proactive
UK construction companies are adopting the same policy. Greater
and more unified focus in this area should be a Health and Safety
objective.
3. ABOUT MEDSCREEN
Medscreen was founded in 1987, to provide management
solutions for the problems that drugs and alcohol bring to the
working environment. The misuse of drugs and alcohol can harm
the safety, efficiency, and reputation of any organisation. We
offer a complete range of services to support a company's policy
on drugs and alcohol. These include policy advice, education,
employee assistance, administration support and the full range
of services necessary for testing programmes. We provide drug
testing products and analytical services for urine, oral fluid
and hair testing, advising our customers which of these best fits
with their requirements.
4. Fundamental to our approach is the recognition
that behind every drug test there is an individual. We believe
that enabling recovering problem users to hold down jobs is as
important as protecting working environments from the hazards
that drugs and alcohol can create.
5. DRUG ABUSE
IN CONSTRUCTION
INDUSTRY
In the UK there is anecdotal evidence to suggest
that there is a problem with substance misuse in the construction
industry. In June 2006 results showed that 6% of workers randomly
tested at Heathrow Terminal 5 tested positive.[43]
6. In the last two years Medscreen has experienced
a growth in interest in its services from the construction sector.
A number of organisations have implemented drug and alcohol testing
programmes driven by concerns over site safety and employee welfare.
Laing O'Rourke has been one of the most proactive in this area
with a testing programme that has been running since 2005. Positivity
levels have been running consistent with current social trends
although there are indications that this is decreasing and that
this is having a positive impact on site Health and Safety.
7. This is consistent with the experience
of the US and Australian construction industry where the issue
is more widely documented and testing is more established.
8. According to the US Department of Health
and Human Services 13.2% of all construction workers used some
form of illicit drug during their working day, 2.5% used legally
prescribed medication for non medical reasons and 63.3% consumed
alcohol at a heavy level.
9. Research by the Centre to Protect Workers
Rights carried out a study of injuries to construction workers
in one US state. They found workers with a substance misuse problem
had and injury rate of 15% whilst those without had a reported
injury rate of 10.9%.
10. According to the National Centre for
Education and Training on Addiction in Flinders Australia construction
workers are the second heaviest users of illegal drugs (behind
the hospitality sector) with 20.7 admitting to recent use whilst
4.2% admitted to being under the influence whilst in the workplace.
11. In the US random testing programmes
have proved effective in reducing drug usage on construction sites
"random drug-testing is the best way to reduce employee drug
use" CEO of Avitar.[44]
This has also had a significant impact on health and safety where
a US study has shown that companies who tested workers for drugs
experienced a 51% reduction in injury rates within two years.[45]
12. DRUG &
ALCOHOL ABUSE
AND WORKPLACE
Home Office statistics shows 35% of the working
population has used drugs in their lifetime and this figure increases
to over 45% in the age group 16-24. Moreover, the figure for those
who have used drugs in the last month (indicating habitual or
regular use) is around 7% of the population. This figure increases
to 16.3% of aged group 16-24.[46]
Alcohol abuse is similarly increasing with the number of people
admitted to hospital with alcohol related liver disease more than
doubling in the last decade.[47]
13. The impact of drugs and alcohol abuse
in the workplace is similarly well documented. Work related alcohol
misuse costs the UK economy an estimated £6.4 billion per
year.[48]
Over 60% of employers reported problems due to alcohol misuse
and 27% reported problems due to drug misuse[49]
according to reports from both Alcohol Concern and DrugScope[50]
with 25% of those seeking help with a drug problem in work, whilst
75% of alcoholics remain in employment.[51]
14. More specifically within safety critical
industries such as the construction industry the National Treatment
Agency have estimated that alcohol is estimated to contribute
20-30% of workplace accidents.
15. Medscreen is the largest and longest
established provider of work place drug education, training and
testing services in Europe. We have over 10 years of statistical
data covering drug and alcohol testing trends by industry sector.
Our database comprises details of regulated industries, where
drug testing is compulsory and the unregulated industries. It
represents much of the UK workplace that carries out testing and
also includes the international shipping sector. In essence, regulated
industries tend to be more conscience of safety critical environments.
16. Analysis of positive test results by
drug group across the past 10 years shows the following trends:
Figure 1
%CHANGE IN POSITIVE DRUG TEST RESULTS—BY
DRUG GROUP
| Drug group | % change
|
| Alcohol | -25 |
| Amphetamines | +9.7 |
| Barbiturates | +53 |
| Benzodiazepines | -54 |
| Cannabinoids | +30 |
| Cocaine | +3,000 |
| Opiates | -1.9 |
| Propoxyphene | -44 |
17. The most significant increase is in cocaine and cannabis
which is consistent with Home Office statistics quoted above showing
these to be the most abused drugs in UK society.
Trend analysis by industry sector reveals the following:
Figure 2
OVERALL % POSITIVE RATES BY INDUSTRY OVER THE PERIOD 1996-2005
18. This indicates the following:
— The international shipping and UK rail sectors
(both safety critical and where there is regulation to support
testing ) show relatively low levels of positivity, and these
low levels are being maintained against a backdrop of increased
levels of abuse in the workplace overall.
— The UK non regulated sector including construction
is showing increasing levels of positivity.
19. DRUGS, IMPAIRMENT
AND SAFETY
"It is widely accepted by employers and employees' bodies
such as the Trades Union Congress that drug screening is of value
in safety-critical occupations such as railway workers".[52]
This is due to the established link between substance misuse,
impairment, and safety.
"Alcohol is known to affect judgement and physical coordination
. . . drinking even small amounts of alcohol whilst carrying out
work that is safety sensitive will increase the risk of an accident"
(HSE).
There is equally a significant body of scientific research
relating to drug related impairment particularly with regard to
cannabis. For illustration:
1. Department for Transport Research Report 202 examines
the incidence of drugs in road accident fatalities. Figures showed
that in the period 1984-87 cannabis was the commonest drug [apart
from alcohol] found post mortem in fatal road traffic accidents
[RTAs]. Cannabis use was estimated to increase the risk of fatal
RTAs by a factor of 3.5.
2. Heishman et al. "Pharmacology Biochemistry
and Behavior", This study substantiates observations made
that even small doses of alcohol and marijuana impair performance.
3. Australian Safety Transport Bureau 2003 identified
a clear link between cannabis consumption and performance in a
safety critical environment. It also showed the effects lasted
for up to 24 hours.
20. CONCLUSIONS
Our submission clearly shows that drug and Alcohol abuse
is becoming more prevalent in the UK workplace. There is a clear
link between drug and alcohol misuse and impairment which brings
a huge risk to the safety critical workplace. Medscreen would
welcome further efforts by the construction industry and policy-makers
to tackle health and safety risks associated with drug and alcohol
misuse.
June 2007
43
Building Magazine, issue 24, 2006. Back
44
quoted in Obesity, Fitness and Wellness Week 2006. Back
45
Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations 2000. Back
46
British Crime Survey 2004-05. Back
47
NHS Statistics on Alcohol: England, 2006. Back
48
Cabinet Office Strategy Unit (2003) Interim analytical report. Back
49
Alcohol Concern Quarterly Information Bulletin, Winter 2006. Back
50
Alcohol Concern/Drug Scope 2002, joint survey "The State
of the Nation". Back
51
The London Drugs Policy Forum and The Priory. Back
52
Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology Report September
2004, Issue Number 228. Back
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