Have you ever gone to work and noticed that one of your fellow co-workers just doesn’t seem to be acting right? You notice that their eyes appear to be blood shot and you think that you can smell a faint smell of alcohol on them. You know that you should do something about it, but you aren’t sure what your policies are.

Many work environments have strict policies regarding substance abuse and use in the work place. However, there are also laws in place that protect people from unnecessary alcohol testing. Certain guidelines must be followed in order to perform alcohol testing in the workplace to ensure that a company does not end up with a lawsuit for accusing someone of using alcohol when this may not even be the case.

Things to Consider

There are a variety of things to consider before performing any type of alcohol testing. What phase of the employment process is someone in? Is it a pre-offer, post offer, or are they already actively employed with the company? The American’s with Disabilities Act states that alcoholism is in fact a disability so asking people about this medical condition requires and employer to think about what stage they are completing in the hiring process before any testing can take place. Here are some do’s and don’ts of alcohol testing in each phase.

Don’t do any type of alcohol testing if someone is in the pre-offer stage. In fact, as an employer, by law you can’t even ask about a person’s medical condition or disability. Do ask if a potential candidate drinks alcohol but DON’T ask them how much. Employers should veer away from asking any person about their alcohol intake to avoid an issue later.

A post-offer made to a person gives the employer the right to ask questions about alcohol intake and perform an alcohol test. Do make sure that you inform the potential employee that there is a medical screening that will ask them questions about disabilities and will test them for drugs and alcohol. Don’t revoke a job offer because a person states that they occasionally drink alcohol. Rather, the test results must indicate that it is in fact a serious condition before a job offer is rescinded.

Do test employees if you feel they are under the influence of alcohol in the work place. This is a safety concern for most companies and is typically not tolerated. Don’t fire a person without having the appropriate policies and procedures in place, in writing. This opens you up for litigation if there are no policies that cover alcohol use in the workplace.

The main focus of any company is to keep everyone safe. Alcoholism is a serious issue and most places won’t tolerate you being under the influence. Always make sure you know what the policies are regarding the use of alcohol, even outside of your job to ensure that you won’t have to be worry about alcohol testing or losing your job.