Current situation

What DARRPP is, and what it isn’t

Key messages

Tactics

Implications for participants

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Starting in the Fall of 2012, major employers in Alberta’s oil sands and construction industries are introducing random alcohol and drug testing at selected work sites

A key part of this initiative is DARRPP, Alberta’s Drug and Alcohol Risk Reduction Pilot Project

DARRPP represents a concerted industry effort to implement and evaluate random testing programs

DARRPP was formally launched with an announcement on June 20, 2012

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What DARRPP is What it’s not

DARRPPP is an industry-wide initiative to introduce random alcohol and drug testing into Northern Alberta energy and construction industry work sites for safety sensitive positions

DARRPP will not administer any alcohol and drug programs – those programs are the sole responsibility of each employer

DARRPP participants have agreed to use a shared model for administering random testing programs and will share statistics related to their implementation

DARRPP participants must adhere to a basic set of standards and practices for the pilot project, but each employer will customize their drug and alcohol policies to suit their own unique needs

DARRPP’s mandate is to establish best practices for random workplace alcohol and drug testing and develop industry guidelines for processes such as case management, assessment and follow-up

DARRPP will not set industry standards; it will report its findings and make recommendations to industry and government at the end of the two-year pilot project

Take a principled approach focused on improving safety and reducing risk

Show respect for human rights and privacy

Recognize the human cost of alcohol and drug abuse and take action to help employees who have dependencies to get help and re-enter the workforce

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Alcohol and drugs pose serious risks to worker safety in Alberta’s energy and construction industries.

The abuse of alcohol and other drugs such as marijuana, cocaine and methamphetamine is an unfortunate reality in our society.

Use of alcohol and drugs -- and even the next-day hangovers after use of these substances -- has been proven to increase fatigue, reduce alertness and slow reaction time. In an industrial work environment these effects can only increase the risk of incidents, injuries and death.

Alcohol and drug use and abuse poses unacceptable safety risks on work sites, where a fleeting moment of inattention or a slow reaction can lead to a tragic outcome.

Safety is not just about the worker, but those around the worker and those who will work in the same area in the future.

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Industry has been working to address alcohol and drug issues for many years.

COAA developed a policy model (“The Canadian Model”) for dealing with workplace alcohol and drug abuse that has been the construction industry standard since 1999.

Policies are currently in place for drug and alcohol screening as well as pre-site access, reasonable cause, random testing and post-incident testing. An important part of this is on-site supervision – front-line managers who understand the program and who have the authority to keep people safe.

COAA has set standards for the provision of aftercare treatment programs for employees who have dependencies.

There continues to be a focus on providing education and awareness around the safety risks associated with alcohol and drug use and abuse.

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Despite a long-term, concerted effort to reduce alcohol and drug-related risks, our current practices are not as effective in identifying at-risk workers as they could be.

Voluntary testing programs such as the Rapid Site Access Program have been successful, with growing participation rates, but they cover only a fraction of the workers in our industry.

Reasonable cause testing, which is prompted by supervisors’ observations and interventions, is not successful at identifying at-risk employees, despite hundreds of thousands of dollars spent over the years on extensive supervisor training.

Close to six times more alcohol and drug abuse problems are revealed in substance abuse expert assessments after incidents occur than pre-emptive tests prompted by supervisor observations.

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Along with effective training, sound policies and procedures, and disciplined incident reporting, random testing in the workplace has been proven to be an effective tool for improving safety.

Random workplace alcohol and drug testing has the potential to identify safety risks before they result in serious incidents.

Since 1995, when the U.S. Federal Transit Administration (FTA) implemented mandatory alcohol and drug testing, positive tests for employees subjected to random testing have declined by nearly 50%.

A long-term U.S. study of the involvement of alcohol in fatal crashes in the trucking industry concluded that the implementation of random alcohol testing was found to be associated with a 23% reduction in fatal crashes involving large trucks.

Random testing has been used in the Canadian transportation industry for many years for truck drivers whose routes cross the U.S./Canada border. More recently, the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) approved the implementation of random alcohol and drug testing.

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DARRPP will continue the industry’s work to improve safety and reduce risks while upholding human rights and privacy.

DARRPP is led by a multi-stakeholder working group with broad representation that includes the major oil sands industry employers and labour providers.

Participants accept their obligations under the Alberta Occupational Health and Safety Act, the Alberta Human Rights Act, and the Personal Information Protection Act.

The ultimate goal of the pilot project is to find ways to improve workplace safety by reducing the risks associated with drug and alcohol abuse.

Participants will evaluate whether their employees who test positive have a dependency, and will provide appropriate aftercare for those who do.

If workers who test positive do not have a dependency, the outcome would depend on the specific circumstances, and would be governed by the employer’s policies and practices. In some situations a positive test with no alcohol or drug dependency would result in recommendations for a treatment or education program. In other cases, the employee could face disciplinary action up to and including termination of employment.

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Communication materials and templates are available to DARRPP participants for use with employees, contractors and other stakeholders, including

Brochure

Toolbox tips – for use by front line supervisors

Video – “Sobering Thoughts”

Poster

Stickers

All materials are available in the participants section of darrpp.ca

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darrpp.ca

Basic home page

Participants only section

online application form

data entry

resources section with latest core documents

discussion forum

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DARRPP official launch – target date June 20, 2012

announcements inside participating organizations

media release and backgrounder (Q&A)

launch of DARRPP website

Workplace awareness campaign (brochure, third party endorsements, toolbox talks, stickers, posters, PowerPoint, video)

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Be consistent with DARRPP’s principles and messages. A concerted approach helps all participants earn public and employee trust and maintain credibility.

Use DARRPP’s communication materials where appropriate and customize them to your own needs.

Engage front line supervisors and safety reps as early in the process as possible; their support is critical to successful implementation and evaluation of random testing programs.

If you have any concerns or questions about DARRPP, contact Project Administrator Pat Atkins at 403-730-9411.

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