The Cost Of Not Drug Testing

The Cost Of Not Drug Testing - employee absenteeism, workers compensation claims, liability, employment drug testing and screening, Total Reporting

The Cost Of Not Drug Testing- 24 Apr

Hiring practices and retention often rank as some of the most important priorities for a company and largely contribute to a company’s overall success and savings. With times being tight for many organizations, it’s important to examine which expenses are crucial to your organization’s health.

While a drug test may not be top-of-mind during these unprecedented times, a safe workplace should be.

Quest Diagnostics, one of our preferred drug testing laboratories, recently released an article to help calculate the overall savings of a drug testing program. We wanted to help share some of those findings with you. You can also check out their Drug Testing Savings Calculator that gives more specific insights on savings based on your company’s size and needs.

So what exactly is the cost of not drug testing?

Cutting drug testing from your organization’s recruiting and training process has been found to result in:

-Increased absenteeism
-Additional needs for recruiting and training efforts
-More accidents
-Higher workers compensation claims

A safe workplace should always be a top priority for any employer, however drug screening programs can also help your organization save money and lower expenses. We’ve expanded on some of the different ways these specific areas can end up saving you money below.

Lower absenteeism

-Employees who use drugs are absent from work on average 50% more days than non-users, according to the National Safety Council.
-Seventy-four billion dollars are lost in productivity each year due to alcohol consumption, according to the National Safety Council.
-Even if an employees is using drugs or alcohol outside of working hours, it may lead to hangovers, loss of production at work, and increased likelihood of injury, according to The Addiction Center.

Recruiting and training savings

-Pre-employment drug testing often helps organizations save on additional recruiting and training costs by helping you find qualified candidates before making a job offer.

Fewer accidents

-Research has shown that screening for drugs can help reduce on-the-job accidents and workplace crimes, including theft and violence, according to EHS Today.
-Employees who suffer from drug or alcohol dependency are nearly three times more likely to either cause or personally experience an injury-related absence from work, according to Occupational Health & Safety.

Lower workers compensation claims

-Employees who use drugs are more likely to be involved in a workplace accident and more likely to file a workers compensation claim, according to the National Safety Council.
-More on-the-job accidents lead to increasing workers compensation claims.

Lower healthcare costs

-Drug testing can lead to lower healthcare costs and premiums for employers. A report by the Surgeon General, states that the U.S. spends $35 billion per year to treat substance use disorders and $85 billion to treat injuries caused by substance use.

If you have further questions about your specific drug testing program or would like to get started with drug testing, please contact our Drug Testing Team (drugtesting@totalreporting.com).

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