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PETROLEUM DIRECTORY: Keeping drugs out of the workplace 17 years of experience, an exemplary reputation and cutting edge technology positions WorkSafe as the industry leader Alan Bailey Petroleum Directory Contributing Writer
With so much safety awareness nowadays, keeping drugs out of the workplace has become a critical issue for many companies. Nobody can afford the safety risks, the legal issues and the work inefficiency associated with drug use.
During the past 17 years WorkSafe Inc., based in Anchorage, Alaska, has moved to the forefront of drug and alcohol testing in the United States.
“We started in 1986 in criminal justice drug testing, eventually expanding into workplace drug testing,” Stephen Mihalik, general manager of WorkSafe, told Petroleum News.
Eight years ago, NANA Development Corp., an Alaska Native regional corporation, bought the company. The company continued to grow under NANA’s ownership; WorkSafe is now the recognized leader in the industry, serving customers nationwide.
Mihalik explained that the company operates as a full-service, third-party administrator, coordinating all aspects of drug testing for customers in regulated and non-regulated industries alike.
“We merge all the facets of drug testing — laboratory, collections, policy, medical review officer, DOT regulations — into one source for the customer,” Mihalik said. Regulated testing Dealing with government regulated testing has become a major component of WorkSafe’s services — the Department of Transportation mandates drug testing for safety-sensitive occupations in all forms public transportation, including the operation of oil and gas pipelines.
Matthew Fagnani, president of WorkSafe, compared WorkSafe’s role in dealing with regulated testing to that of a CPA providing tax services. The company’s experts can explain how the regulations apply in a particular situation, to make sure that the customer’s policies achieve legal compliance and coordinate the testing program.
“Oftentimes, federal regulations are confusing,” Fagnani said. “We make sure they are operating in compliance with a legally defensible drug and alcohol testing policy.” Non-regulated testing Even in situations where government drug testing regulations don’t apply, employers will often initiate a program of drug testing to improve safety and efficiency in the workplace. In fact drug testing works to the advantage of employees as well as employers.
“If you have a fellow employee who is worried about where their next fix is coming from rather than backing you up properly, you can image how nerve wracking that can be,” Fagnani said.
WorkSafe helps customers assess their needs and formulate drug-testing policies.
“Some clients do only pre-employment drug testing,” Mihalik said. “Other customers create a deterrent policy such as random testing.”
In Alaska, WorkSafe also helps customers avoid litigation by ensuring compliance with state statute 23.10 for workplace drug testing.
“If an employee tests positive and the employer followed the steps of (statute) 23.10, then the employer in most cases cannot be sued,” Mihalik said. Testing for evidence WorkSafe tests to find evidence of drug use rather than for medical or health care purposes. This testing for evidence places some strict legal requirements on how to do the sampling, test the samples and document the results.
“If a significant part of the documentation, the testing or the collection is flawed, that evidence is no longer admissible,” Mihalik said.
It’s also critical to protect the person being tested by guaranteeing that the sample tested belongs to the donor and that the test results remain confidential.
“Our responsibility is to also make sure that there’s donor integrity in the testing process,” Fagnani said.
In the event of a positive test, WorkSafe engages the services of a medical review officer. The medical review officer is a qualified physician who contacts the donor to determine if there is a medical explanation for the positive test. Reliable services The use of highly reliable people and organizations for services such as sample collection and laboratory analysis is essential because of the legal ramifications of drug testing. A mistake in the testing process could prove disastrous for both employer and employee.
WorkSafe’s Anchorage-based staff includes three certified substance abuse professionals. With its extensive experience in the drug testing business, the company has linked up with a cadre of top-notch service providers across Alaska and the rest of the United States.
DOT regulated drug testing requires the use of federally certified testing laboratories. However, WorkSafe goes beyond that standard by using federally certified laboratories for both regulated and non-regulated testing and by making sure that the laboratories meet WorkSafe’s own strict standards.
“In our mind not all labs are the same ... we go through some testing of our own,” Fagnani said. “You pick a lab very carefully because you want to make sure that you’re representing your customer well.”
It’s also important that test results come back quickly, regardless of the test donor’s location in the United States. Test samples are sent by air, counter-to-counter, to the laboratory. The laboratory downloads the results through a secure link directly into WorkSafe’s computer system. Training Mihalik sees training and awareness as key factors in achieving a drug-free workplace. In particular, WorkSafe provides training for the recognition of the signs and symptoms of drug and alcohol use.
“Having a drug-free workplace is not a matter of having ink on paper,” Mihalik said. “It’s got to be a living document ... there’s got to be a constant awareness to have that deterrence.”
There’s also a critical issue around giving both the employer and employee confidence in the drug testing process — explaining how the tests are conducted, how people’s identities are protected and how the test results are tied back to the donors. It’s important to address employee concerns that might range from the impact of social drinking habits to worries about privacy.
“We’ll help with an employee orientation to explain to the employees some of the protocols and what the employer’s policy says,” Fagnani said. National leadership WorkSafe has achieved a pre-eminent national position in its industry. The company has been actively involved in the Substance Abuse Program Administrator’s Association — Fagnani is a past president of the Association board and Mihalik is a current board member.
This national involvement enables WorkSafe to promptly inform its customers about changes to the regulations and any new drug testing issues.
“Some of the things we’ve done to bring national leadership to Alaska is through seminars where we’ve brought up representatives from Washington, D.C.,” Fagnani said.
WorkSafe has also established a national reputation for its training programs — through its affiliate company, Professional Training Systems, WorkSafe provides training for drug testing companies throughout the nation.
“We’ve written and produced one of the premier training programs in the country for our industry through desk reference guides, videos, Internet training, classroom training and seminar instructors,” said Fagnani. “We also write and distribute a quality newsletter to report national trends, new technologies, policy changes, etc.”
Fagnani attributes much of the company’s success to its years of experience. There’s no substitute for the depth of knowledge that comes from seeing how the testing regulations, policies and procedures work out in practice. That depth of knowledge often proves essential in this complex and legally sensitive field.
“We’ve learned in 17 years that experience does count in drug and alcohol testing,” Fagnani said.
Editor’s note: Alan Bailey owns Badger Productions in Anchorage, Alaska
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