Homepage Integrity Sampling newsroom

Drug Testing in Queensland Far From Novel

Announcement posted by Integrity Sampling 14 Oct 2016

Sportspeople have done it for years and so too have our miners. Drivers are now doing it and it seems that council workers and hospitality workers will soon follow.
Sportspeople have done it for years and so too have our miners. Drivers are now doing it and it seems that council workers and hospitality workers will soon follow.

Drug testing in Queensland is far from novel and in fact can be traced back to the 1980’s when Queensland’s miners started undergoing random drug testing at work (see below). Roadside drug testing has also become commonplace, with around 50,000 drug tests expected to take place on Queensland roads this year. Importantly, this roadside drug testing is keeping drug users off our roads, with the ratio of positive drug tests far outstripping the ratio of positive alcohol tests.

Recent reports in Queensland news agencies suggest that the acceptance of the importance of drug testing – on our roads, in our workplaces and in our communities – is rising.

On the Gold Coast, the Gold Coast Council is considering drug testing its council staff. The council is looking to random drug test employees as well as anyone who has been involved in a workplace incident. It’s expected that around 50 drug tests will be conducted each week.

In addition, a well-known Queensland hospitality operator has already implemented drug testing of its employees, due to a rising concern with ICE use. The owner says the ICE use is leading to a rise in theft from the business and other issues involving staff.

Miners lead the way in drug testing success

The rising trend in drug testing Queensland employees is being seen nationwide. It’s estimated that around 15% of Australian employees are drug tested at work today, compared with around 5% a decade ago.

Importantly, there is evidence that conducting drug testing at work can lower drug usage rates.

In the early 1980’s the mining industry started introducing drug testing because of a rising concern of employees coming to work under the influence and even using drugs at work. In fact, of all industry sectors, the mining industry was considered the worst for employee drug usage. Given the nature of the industry, the safety implications couldn’t be underestimated or ignored.

Today, after 30 years of drug testing, the mining industry has the lowest drug usage rates of all major industries, showing that drug testing, as part of an overall drug and alcohol management plan, can achieve tremendous success.

That’s the good news. The bad news is that research shows that other industries are falling behind. The worst is the hospitality industry, with 31% of employees admitting to taking drugs and 7.7% taking drugs at work. Not far behind is construction (24.1% and 4.2%) and manufacturing (23% and 3.6%).

While drug testing is on the rise and is having a positive impact –in sports, on our roads, in our workplaces and in our communities – clearly we still have a way to go.

NOTE: Integrity Sampling conducts workplace drug testing across Queensland and has 6 branch locations, including Brisbane, Cairns, Mackay, Rockhampton, Townsville and Winton.

Integrity Sampling uses the Drager Drug Test 5000 for its drug testing. Click here for more information.