Royal Mail to start drug and alcohol testing?

[reddevils]

(Alcohol is usually set at the uk drink drive limit and is a breathalyser test, the drug test is a piss test and all sinks and taps will be secured in the sample room, and you wont get to smuggle in a pot of your clean mates piss either)

Where is the sample room going to be then? So I know Mail centres may have resources but where is the sample room going to be in a tiny depot in the middle of nowhere UK? Or are they only going to target big population centres. Even so I would love to know how this can be implemented in any delivery depot in the UK.

You are highly suspicious because you do not know how this policy will be carried out yet you are very certain and you are certainly fear mongering.
You are not a postman, I know that.

[LouBarlow]

It is perfectly legal and happems in almost all industries now, you won't get on a building site these days without passing a drug & alcohol test.

Just like SISO where it is easy to see the people who have never punched the clock, it is now easy to see the people who have never worked in other industries where regular random drug and alcohol testing takes place.

Its coming in.

Aquarius solutions or something was the company mention on the blue card, they will be doing the testing along with RM occ health provider.

If your smoking weed prepare to be fired, you will not surivive for long.

(Alcohol is usually set at the uk drink drive limit and is a breathalyser test, the drug test is a piss test and all sinks and taps will be secured in the sample room, and you wont get to smuggle in a pot of your clean mates piss either)

Did you even read the card you are on about?

[Tman]

I mean, being overweight means you are more likely to have a cardiac episode at the wheel of a RM vehicle. Should we all be made to lose weight as well?

Being overweight isn't a crime (yet) but driving when over the limit, is.
Notice the subtle difference?

[2chorizon]

(Alcohol is usually set at the uk drink drive limit and is a breathalyser test, the drug test is a piss test and all sinks and taps will be secured in the sample room, and you wont get to smuggle in a pot of your clean mates piss either)

Where is the sample room going to be then? So I know Mail centres may have resources but where is the sample room going to be in a tiny depot in the middle of nowhere UK? Or are they only going to target big population centres. Even so I would love to know how this can be implemented in any delivery depot in the UK.

You are highly suspicious because you do not know how this policy will be carried out yet you are very certain and you are certainly fear mongering.
You are not a postman, I know that.

Yeah yeah yeah, good luck with it then.

The savagery of it will shock you to the core, you will remember my words that you scoffed at when you get the tap on the shoulder.

[2chorizon]

We work closely with workplaces to assess risk within the business and provide recommendations for support packages. 

It is important that workplaces have an appropriate alcohol and drug policy in place and that everyone expected to observe the policy understands it completely.

These policies usually find themselves within the Health and Safety policies that all workplaces are expected to have. Effective write up and implementation of these policies will undoubtedly have an impact on business and learning outcomes.

We can work with you to write and implement policies to safeguard your people and business.

This process includes;

General workplace assessment to inform policy content.Write up of completely new policy.Evaluation and recommendation of revisions to existing policies.Collaboration with Occupational Health, Human Resources and other relevant departments.Consultation with Trade Unions and other relevant bodies where appropriate.

As part of this service we can also refer to alcohol and drug testing organisations.

https://www.aquariuslife.org.uk/what-we ... -strategy/

[LouBarlow]

I mean, being overweight means you are more likely to have a cardiac episode at the wheel of a RM vehicle. Should we all be made to lose weight as well?

Being overweight isn't a crime (yet) but driving when over the limit, is.
Notice the subtle difference?

It isn’t up to your manager to ensure you are legally driving. Just as if you drive with an unsafe van it is your responsibility.

[Tman]

Your "responsibility" is to turn up for work not under the influence of any booze or drugs.
As some seem unable to do that, RM (and most other employers) can and do carry out random testing to catch those who would flout the rules.
Best of luck to anyone "caught" who thinks whining about "it's not your job" will get them off.

[TopperGas]

I mean, being overweight means you are more likely to have a cardiac episode at the wheel of a RM vehicle. Should we all be made to lose weight as well?

Being overweight isn't a crime (yet) but driving when over the limit, is.
Notice the subtle difference?

It isn’t up to your manager to ensure you are legally driving. Just as if you drive with an unsafe van it is your responsibility.

Pretty certain it's down to the manager to make sure that all the annual driving license checks are completed? If a manager is knowingly letting a driver drive under obvious influence I'm fairly certain they would be some come back if he was involved in a serious accident whilst under the influence, I doubt just telling the H&S/Police "it's not my job" would wash.

[2chorizon]

It is about "Liability"

All large companies conduct random drug & alcohol testing, or if they don't they soon will be and are just playing catch up.

If you're drinking you will probably be okay as long as you are not boozing on the job.

If your doing drugs and especially cannabis then it is only a matter of time before the computer randomly selects your clock number and you get escorted for testing, fail that test AND YOU ARE GONE.

The only way out for cannabis smokers is to quit smoking it, or buy yourself 6 months or so by asking for the "support" which you will be unlikely to comply with and thus get sacked anyway.

When the union shortly announces the joint agreement they will have probably secured the cannabis smokers about 6 weeks to get clean before testing commences.

If anyone thinks i have made this up, we will come back here in 6 months time and have this conversation again

[lofarl]

https://www.myroyalmail.com/sites/defau ... ces%27.pdf

[LouBarlow]

I mean, being overweight means you are more likely to have a cardiac episode at the wheel of a RM vehicle. Should we all be made to lose weight as well?

Being overweight isn't a crime (yet) but driving when over the limit, is.
Notice the subtle difference?

It isn’t up to your manager to ensure you are legally driving. Just as if you drive with an unsafe van it is your responsibility.

Pretty certain it's down to the manager to make sure that all the annual driving license checks are completed? If a manager is knowingly letting a driver drive under obvious influence I'm fairly certain they would be some come back if he was involved in a serious accident whilst under the influence, I doubt just telling the H&S/Police "it's not my job" would wash.

That has been the way since at least I have been in the job though. I’ve seen many people sent home for coming to work straight from a club or literally falling over in one other case. That is exactly how it should be done and there is no evidence at all that any 3rd party needs to get involved. Are incidents of drug/drink driving while working on the rise? No, it is clearly another way for an employer to try and control every facet of their employees lives.

[TopperGas]

I think it's impossible to say whether the cases of drug driving is on the increase or not, given it seems to be increasing outside of RM then there's no reason to believe it's not increasing within RM.

[Barnacle]

https://www.myroyalmail.com/sites/defau ... ces%27.pdf

When is asking for support a fast track to ruining your life? Answer above.

[reddevils]

[/quote]

When is asking for support a fast track to ruining your life? Answer above.
[/quote]

Precisely. Lose your driving license for between 6 and 12 months, possibly causing more stress and making your dependency worse.

Adjusted/Amended duties:
If the amended/adjusted duties become unsustainable for the business, this may affect
your ongoing employment.
So not even guaranteeing your job, that's really supportive!
Considering most depots have reduced indoor workload immensely this seems a suspect way of getting more people out the door.

And by the way, this support will require you take more drug/alcohol tests. So you can not fail or have setbacks in your recovery or you will be sacked! Absolutely ridiculous. Never heard of a rehabilitation success rate of 100% ever. So if you do admit to problems it is likely you will sacked in the 'support period'.

And what are they offering:
8 consultations on a telephone in 12 month that will magically make this drug/alcohol problem disappear.

[LouBarlow]

https://www.myroyalmail.com/sites/defau ... ces%27.pdf

When is asking for support a fast track to ruining your life? Answer above.

The most disturbing thing about this whole scheme is that it is open to abuse as you can volunteer your fellow workers to be inducted if you think they have a problem.