The Workplace Facts
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Small businesses are more like to have problems with illicit drugs
- Substance abusers will steer away from drug-free workplace companies and go to work for those small businesses without a program and, in particular, where there is no drug testing involved which may result in their detection
- Employers with 25 employees or less are twice as likely to use illicit drugs as employees with larger companies
- Illicit drug use among employees is linked to a lack of workplace policies
- Every 23 minutes a death occurs as a result of drug or alcohol related accident
- Approximately 75% of drug abusers are employed using illicit drugs and/or alcohol abuse
- Drug and alcohol abuse are the highest ranking reasons for workplace violence increasing
- According to OSHA, 65% of workplace accidents are caused by a substance abuse and employees who abuse file 6 times more worker's compensation claims
- 10-20% of fatalities on the job test positive for drugs or alcohol
- Employees who abuse drugs and alcohol utilize 84% more health benefits and have 16 times more absences from work
- Drug and alcohol abuse causes 500 million lost workdays as well as a high turnover rate. This is extremely costly to the company and lowers productivity
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Substance Abuse Costs for Employers
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Employee Absenteeism
- Alcoholics and problem drinkers are absent from work 3.8 to 8.3 times more often than normal.
- Drug users are absent from work and average of five days per month due to drug use.
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Alcohol Costs
- Light and moderate drinkers cause 60 percent of tardiness, absenteeism and poor quality work as a result of alcohol consumption. Heavy drinkers and alcoholics cause the remaining 40 percent.
- Less Productive
- When they do show up, substance abusers are 33 percent less productive and cost their employers $7,000 annually (Small Business Administration). Annual productivity losses from substance abuse amount to $640 for every American worker, regardless of whether they are substance abusers.
- Drinking among U.S. workers can threaten public safety, impair job performance, and result in costly medical, social, and other problems affecting employees and employers alike.
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Work Performance Problems
- The more frequently employees get high or drunk from consuming alcohol, the more likely they are to report work-performance problems, according to a study of over 6,000 employees.
- Employees who abstained from alcohol reported an average of 4.2 work-performance problems in the past year; employees who were high or drunk on 13 or more days in the past month reported an average of 7.5 problems.
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Industrial Fatalities
- Up to 40 percent of industrial fatalities can be linked to alcohol abuse and alcoholism.
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Workplace Accidents
- Drug-using employees are 3.6 times more likely to be involved in workplace accidents and five times more likely to file a workers' compensation claim.
- Higher Workers' Compensation Costs
- 38 percent to 50 percent of all workers' compensation claims are related to substance abuse (National Council on Compensation Insurance).
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Higher Medical Costs
- Substance abusers are three times more likely to use medical benefits than other employees.
- More Turnover
- Workers who reported current illicit drug use were more likely than those who did not report illicit drug use to have worked for three or more employers (9% vs. 4%) and voluntarily left an employer in the past year (25% vs. 15%) and to have skipped one or more days of work in the past month (13% vs. 5%).
- Skipped Days
- Workers who reported heavy alcohol use were about twice as likely as those who did not report such use to have worked for three or more employers in the past year (8% vs. 4%).
- Workplace Theft
- 80 percent of drug abusers steal from their workplaces to support their drug use.
- Workplace Violence
- Substance abuse is the third leading cause of workplace violence.
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Employer Education
The Workplace Facts
Developing a Drug-Free Workplace
Marijuana in the Workplace
Random Drug/Alcohol Testing
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