Ohio drug free workplace program

Important notes The Basic and Advanced levels have more requirements, but successful participants may receive a premium rebate for an unlimited number of years or be eligible for start-up grants. Comparable program participants do not receive premium rebates. However, you only need BWC approval for the comparable program to be eligible to bid or work on state construction sites.

Contact your local customer service office to speak with a BWC employer services staff member for specific guidance about the program or level that would work best for you. BWC maintains a database of contractors and subcontractors approved to bid or work on state construction or public improvement projects.

State contracting authorities will only consider bids from contractors who are part of BWC's approved drug-free state construction contractor database. It will not allow contractors or subcontractors of any size to provide labor services on a public improvement project unless BWC's state construction contractor database lists the employer as approved.

To be eligible to bid or work on a state construction site public improvement project, the contractor or subcontractor must be enrolled in and implement a BWC drug-free program, either DFSP or a comparable program.

Comparable program requirements Education and training are one-time only for each employee and supervisor. Supervisors must also get an additional hour of skill-building training before working on a state site. DFSP basic and advanced level requirements Education and training involve annual employee education for each employee and supervisor.

Employees of basic and advanced level contractors, including supervisors, must also receive drug-free, employee education, and supervisors must receive supervisor training before working on a state construction site.

You do not have to conduct a post-accident test if all of the following circumstances exist:. Testing focuses on who may have caused or contributed to a work-related accident where there is an injury requiring off-site medical attention, a fatality or damage to company property or vehicles in apparent excess of amounts the employer specifies in its written DFSP policy.

An accident investigation is the key to determine whom to test and when alcohol testing is appropriate along with a possible drug test. The testing system used for DFSP is called systems presence testing.

This form of testing for specified drugs and alcohol has the support of organized labor and is considered the fairest and most reliable testing system in existence.

BWC's approach to alcohol and other drug testing follows the federal testing model that is considered the gold standard in testing with substantial built-in protections for employees through acknowledged accuracy and reliability, and the involvement of a certified medical review officer who reviews all testing results. We recommend the highest degree of assistance available for employees and, at the Basic level, a commitment to the health and well-being of employees, including compiling and sharing a list of local assistance resources for employees with substance problems and their families.

In addition, we require employers participating in the Advanced level to also pre-establish a working relationship with an employee assistance professional to whom they can refer an employee with a substance problem for an assessment and pay for the cost of the assessment.

Ohio Department. This is just a separator between the navigation and the help and search icons. Web Content Viewer. Workers' Compensation Overview. Workers' Compensation Coverage. Workers' Compensation Claims. Employer Forms. Tools for Employer Representatives. All Employer Resources. For TPAs. June 30, Agency. H The individual tested shall initial the I. I The collection site person shall enter into the record book all information identifying the specimen and shall sign the book.

K The collection site person shall complete the chain of custody form and ship the specimen to the testing laboratory in a sealed, secure container. L The laboratory shall use the chain of custody procedures to maintain control and accountability of all specimens from receipt through completion of testing. The date and purpose shall be documented on an appropriate chain of custody form each time a specimen is handled and transferred.

M Laboratory personnel shall inspect each specimen package for evidence of tampering, etc. N Specimens shall be tested by grouping them into batches, with each batch containing an appropriate number of standards for calibrating the instrumentation and a minimum of ten percent controls or as stipulated by federal department of health and human services regulations and guidelines. The cutoff levels shall be those established by the federal department of health and human services.

B Confirmatory test methods and testing levels for other drugs meeting certification criteria of the federal department of health and human services shall be added to the testing protocol as deemed necessary by the director of the department of administrative services or as required by federal law. A The laboratory shall report test results to the agency head or the person designated by the agency head to receive test results. All test results shall be certified as accurate by the responsible person at the laboratory.

Results may not be transmitted by telephone, but transmission by other electronic means computer, teleprinter or facsimile shall be permissible.

All specimens which test negative on the initial test or negative on the confirmatory test shall be reported as negative. Only specimens confirmed positive shall be reported positive for a specific drug or drugs. The medical review officer will not normally report quantitation of test results, but will only report whether the test was positive or negative unless prior written approval to provide other information is authorized by federal regulations or, if none apply, by the director of the department of administrative services.

C Each agency shall provide to the administrator of the drug-free workplace services program a statistical summary of drug testing information, and any other documentation pertaining to the testing process upon request or as required by federal law. A All records pertaining to a given alcohol or drug test shall be maintained as required by federal law. B All positive urine specimens shall be retained in frozen storage as required by federal law to permit any authorized retest.

A Every vacancy announcement for testing designated positions for the state service shall state:. An applicant with a positive test shall not be offered employment. B Each applicant shall be notified that appointment to the position will be contingent upon a negative test result. Failure of the vacancy announcement to contain this statement shall not preclude applicant testing if advance written notice is provided applicants in some other manner.

C The agency drug program coordinator or other designated agency person shall direct applicants to the appropriate collection site. The test must be undertaken as soon after notification as possible, and no later than thirty-two hours after notice to the applicant. D Applicants shall be advised of the opportunity to offer an explanation or submit medical documentation of legally prescribed medications or a recommendation for medical marijuana which may explain a positive test result to the medical review officer.

E Any agency of state government shall decline to extend a final offer of employment to any applicant with a verified positive test result and such applicant will not be reconsidered for state employment for a period of one year. Examples of reasonable suspicion shall include, but need not be limited to, slurred speech, disorientation, and abnormal conduct or behavior.

C Reasonable suspicion must be documented in writing according to procedures prescribed in applicable federal regulations, any applicable collective bargaining agreement covering the employee or, in the absence of any such regulations or agreement, by procedures developed by the director of the department of administrative services.

D Reasonable suspicion testing shall also include incident-based accident or unsafe practice testing wherein employees involved in on-the-job accidents or who engage in unsafe on-duty job-related activities that pose a danger to themselves, to others, or the overall operation of the agency may be subject to testing. Such incident-based reasonable suspicion testing shall be for conditions and situations and according to procedures prescribed by applicable collective bargaining agreements covering the employee or, in the absence of any such agreement, according to conditions and procedures developed by the director of the department of administrative services.

Employees subject to federal testing procedures will submit to federal post-accident testing as required by federal regulations.

E The employee shall be asked to provide the urine sample or submit to a breath test for alcohol in accordance with criteria delineated in the applicable collective bargaining agreement for the employee or, in the absence of any such agreement, according to criteria developed by the director of the department of administrative services or as required by federal regulations. F Supervisors and managers shall be trained to address the abuse of alcohol or other drugs by employees, to recognize facts that give rise to reasonable suspicion, and the proper procedures for documenting facts and circumstances to support a finding of reasonable suspicion as required by collective bargaining agreements or, in the absence of any such agreements, by the director of the department of administrative services.

Failure to receive such training shall not, however, invalidate otherwise proper reasonable suspicion testing. G Employees shall be given the opportunity as required by applicable collective bargaining agreements or, in the absence of such agreements, as stipulated by the director of the department of administrative services to offer an explanation or submit medical documentation of legally prescribed medications, legally recommended medical marijuana, or exposure to toxic substances which may explain a positive test result.

A An employee may be found to use illegal drugs on the basis of any appropriate evidence including, but not limited to:. B On the first occasion in which an employee has a confirmed positive alcohol or other drug test resulting from reasonable suspicion testing, the employee may be required to enroll in and successfully complete a substance abuse program certified by the Ohio department of mental health and addiction services.

C Disciplinary action taken against an employee found to use illegal drugs may include the full range of disciplinary actions, including removal. The severity of the action chosen will depend on the circumstances of each case and the requirements of any governing collective bargaining agreements and employing agency work rules, policies and procedures.

D Any employee who refuses to submit to a properly ordered drug test shall be subject to disciplinary actions as stipulated in the governing collective bargaining agreement or, in the absence of any such agreement, the relevant agency work rules, policies and procedures.

E Attempts by an employee to alter or substitute the specimen provided for drug testing shall be deemed a refusal to take the drug test when required and shall subject the employee to the same disciplinary actions as required for refusing to submit to a properly ordered test.