FACTS

1. There are some people who abuse drugs or alcohol and qualify as “high-functioning,” or able to reach personal and professional success despite substance abuse. “High-functioning” does not mean healthy. Substance abuse and addiction cause damage in workplaces.
2. Prevention of problems occurs by implementing an effective workplace drug program that deals with drug testing before hiring, drug testing during employment and consequences for violating the rules.
3. Factors that contribute to alcohol and drug abuse in the workplace include:

• Workplace culture and acceptance of misuse of substances.
• Workplace alienation.
• Availability of alcohol and drugs.
• Existence and enforcement of workplace substance abuse policies.

4. Establishing comprehensive workplace substance abuse programs is a “win-win” situation for employees and employers.
5. Employers suffer from hiring substance abusers in many ways. Not only do they run the risk of having deadly or dangerous accidents occur, but substance abusers also cost employers money and hurt them financially.

STATS

• As per U.S. Drug Test Centers, of the $81 billion dollars spent per year on drug abuse in the workplace, researchers estimate that it is spent on:
• $25.5 billion dollars of this money is spent due to lost productivity and absenteeism at work due to drug abuse each year. Another $25 billion is lost due to healthcare costs per year. Also, an estimated 80% of drug users supported their drug use by stealing from their work.
• According to (NCADD) some 70 percent of the estimated 14.8 million Americans who use illegal drugs are employed, and workers who report having three or more jobs in the previous five years are about twice as likely to be current or past year users of illegal drugs as those who have had two or fewer jobs.
• Of all drug users, 68.9% are employed and active in the workplace, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMHSA).
• Fifty-five more employees died from fatal overdoses in the workplace in 2017 than 2016, offsetting the 33 fewer workplace deaths seen overall last year, according to the BLS data.
• A total of 5,147 fatal work injuries were recorded in the U.S. in 2017, down only 0.8% from the 5,190 fatal injuries reported in 2016, marking the second consecutive year that workplace deaths surpassed the 5,000 incident mark, according to the BLS.
• Unintentional overdoses due to nonmedical use of drugs or alcohol while at work increased 25.3% to 272 deaths in 2017, marking the fifth consecutive year in which unintentional workplace overdose deaths have increased by at least 25%, according to the BLS fatality data.
• 40% of all industrial workplace fatalities are caused by substance abusers.