Drug Free Workplace – Undercover Investigations
The State of Florida recently signed a bill to allow drug testing in the workplace – The Drug Free Workplace Act. The test can be done randomly every three months and include up to 10% of a company’s workforce. Positive tests can result in immediate termination.
While this may assist companies with on the job usage that could cause potential safety risks (e.g. forklift drivers or other machine operators), it doesn’t address other drug related issues that may be going on in a workplace. There are cases where drug dealers have applied for employment with companies to open themselves to a new clientele in a relatively ‘safe’ zone free of police patrols like they would encounter on the streets.
To investigate possible drug activity like dealing, which can lead to workplace violence if deals go bad, an undercover investigator would be suggested. Undercover investigators will document who is involved and where the violations are taking place. This can also include video and the company can take appropriate action with the evidence collected.
Drug Free Workplace enacted in Florida
By: By Maggie Rooks | Special to the Floridan
Published: April 19, 2012
Gov. Rick Scott recently signed a bill into law that allows Florida state agencies to randomly test workers for drugs.
The Drug Free Workplace Act will let state employers test up to 10 percent of their workforce once every three months. The first time an employee tests positive, he or she will be fired.
The testing was first proposed in the 2011 Florida Legislature session but was passed in the state House of Representatives and Senate during the last week of the 2012 session, according to a press release from the governor’s office.
Previous Florida drug testing laws only allowed for the random testing of state workers in “safety sensitive” situations and treatment options instead of automatic termination on the first positive test, according to the statute.
Victoria Mock, 20, has never been drug tested for her job as a student worker for the Leon County School Board. However, she isn’t worried about the new statute.
“I wouldn’t find being tested inconvenient because I have nothing to be worried about,” Mock said.
For the purposes of the Florida Drug Free Workplace Act, the term “drug” can refer to alcohol, prescription medicines, narcotics, hallucinogens, amphetamines, opiates and any other addicting substances.