Construction Injury News

Drug Testing Reduces Workplace Injuries in Construction Injuries

Construction companies that test for drugs appear to have a reduction of workplace injuries, according to the study, “Evaluation of Drug Testing in the Workplace: Study of the Construction Industry.” The study, published in the November/December 2001 issue of The Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, examined the effectiveness of drug testing of construction company employees in making the workplace safer.

In the past two decades, workplace drug testing and drug-free workplace programs have grown exponentially. A major contributor to this increase is the Omnibus Transportation Employee Testing Act of 1991, which requires drug and alcohol testing of safety-sensitive transportation employees in aviation, trucking, railroads, mass transit, pipelines and other transportation industries. An outgrowth of drug testing employees in these types of transportation positions is the testing of construction workers.

The study looks at the construction industry and the impact a drug-free workplace program has on the reduction of injury incident rates and related workers’ compensation ratings. Statistically, construction and mining have the highest percentage of problem drinkers, with nearly one in seven workers in these fields having a serious alcohol problem. The use of alcohol and other substances while at the worksite greatly influences a person’s ability to perform job functions safely. With a large number of high-risk and safety-sensitive positions within the construction industry, there is an increase in the likelihood for work-site accidents and injury. This increase in injury directly affects a company’s workers’ compensation experience-rating modification factors. Read more at: www.dol.gov

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	Did You Know?
	Construction accident injuries may be covered by workers compensation. Most are. The workers' compensation system is designed to provide benefits to injured workers no matter whether an injury is caused by the employers or employee's negligence. But there are some limits. Generally, injuries caused because an employee is intoxicated or using illegal drugs are not covered by workers' compensation.