diet pills

Jocelyn

Are diet pills considered a prescription/OTC drug that is OK to work under the influence of? How about cold/flu medicine? How about inhalers for asthma sufferers? Since people react differently to different meds, is this strictly a judgement call?

Margaret Morford

I think it is a judgment call because, as you said above, everybody reacts differently to different medications. Do they appear to be impaired? If they are, you need to take them off work so that they do not get hurt or make errors that could cause problems for the company. Tell them that they need to go back to their doctor for some different medication or an adjustment of the dosage because the current dosage is impairing their ability to work.

Margaret Morford
theHRedge
615-371-8200
[email]mmorford@mleesmith.com[/email]
[url]http://www.thehredge.net[/url]

Gar

I totally agree with Margaret. The employee's physician is the key to the situation. If the employee dosen't have a doctor's authorization for the pills and they impact performance or cause safety problems, he/she should be treated like any other employee under the influence.

Down_the_Middle

It would help to know a little more about your intentions or major concerns. It's unclear about whether you're hoping to require employees to announce their use of any such OTC compound or whether you can address any impairment concerns solely on the suspicion of an OTC product.

Jocelyn

We're developing a drug testing policy and want to be able to explain "reasonable suspicion". I've heard one of our employees is suspected of illegal drug use and has been asking a superior about using "Minithins" while at work. To my knowledge, "minithins" contain ephedra. So we began to question what the difference is between the effect of illegal drugs and legal drugs on someone's work performance. Hypothetically, could someone using cocaine act/perform the same way as someone using an herbal/OTC/prescription stimulant?

Gar

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 01-16-02 AT 05:16PM (CST)[/font][p]For my money it makes no difference if it's legal or illegal. If there is no physician's authorization, the employee should not be using it/be under its influence on company time/premises if it presents safety or performance problems.

Down_the_Middle

The real issue here is impairment and your ability to "question" employees who appear to be under "some influence". Trying to differentiate between legal and illegal is a dangerous trap; rather s/b focused on one's ability to perform their duties free from impairment.

My reasonable suspicion policy talks about being under the influence of any drug/alcohol substance. This enable us to handle the cocaine impairment exactly the same as the person who decides to 'chug" 8 bottles of NyQuil and is unable to perform. Gar's correct in terms of who cares what has been consumed. Employees who test positive for a compound better have proof of a physicians Rx; otherwise they are treated the same---------NyQuill abusers are handled the same as heroin junkies.

Not knowing whether you're compelled to comply with the Drug Free Workplace Act (DFWA), the language in that statute talks about drug-related activity and the use of controlled substances. This law covers the peddling of illegal stuff. Good luck