The Department Of Transportation (DOT) has issued new rules for drug and alcohol testing, for all the transportation employers and safety-sensitive transportation employees. This new regulation was designed to prevent accidents and property damage that are caused by the misuse of drug and alcohol by the drivers. DOT has provided certain rules on how to conduct these tests, what is the process of testing and who to conduct these tests. These rules cover the employees of State and Local government who are required to have a Commercial driving License (CDL).

Education and Training of Drug Testing

Every company has to provide the educational materials for their drivers, which explains the requirements and policies for testing drug and alcohol ingestion regulations. According to the Sec.382.601 (b), the educational materials should include the following discussions.

• Personal identity of the drivers designated by the employer to answer the questions regarding the material.

• Requirements of the drivers, subject to the misuse of alcohol and controlled substance requirements.

• Explanation of safety-sensitive function to understand the period of workday that is required for the drivers to be in compliance.

• Specific information regarding the conduct of the driver that is prohibited.

• The circumstances under which the driver will be tested for drug, alcohol or any other substances.

• The test procedure of DOT conducted for the presence of drug or alcohol substances.

• The list of requirements for submitting the alcohol or drug tests by the driver.

• Explanation of what constitutes the refusal to submit the drug or alcohol testing.

• The consequences for drivers found to be dishonored the rules of prohibition of alcohol or other substances. This includes, immediate removal of driver safety-sensitive functions.

• The information about the affects of drugs, alcohol, or any such substances on the health and work of the people.

Drugs That DOT Test

As specified by the DOT, the companies should test for alcohol and the following five drugs:

• Marijuana, Cocaine, Opiates, Amphetamines and Phencyclidine (PCP).

Different Tests That DOT Require

According to the rules of DOT, drivers have to perform the following drug and alcohol tests: Pre-Employment Testing, Reasonable Suspicion Testing, Post-Accident Testing and Random Testing.

Apart from these four tests, the "Return-to-duty" and "Follow-up tests" are linked to the employer’s consequences policy, which are to be performed under the DOT rule.

This information makes you aware about the DOT drug and alcohol tests and educational measures that every company provides for their employees.