Railway job.
ZERO tolerance.
Effectively, no dope in a couple of years.
No second chance. Out-the-door.
Hey, you even read positive if you´ve been in the same room as someone smoking dope!
Given most [dope] smokers I know cannot even decide whether they [seriously] need a pee after smoking.........

John: I don't know what the people you know have been smoking BUT,,,,... ????

And just because the rail industry chooses to apply and enforce a 'zero tolerance' standard... without any evidence of any improved safety .... does not mean we all need to adopt the same standard.... Blind rule following is NOT conducive to good H&S.. (In my opinion)

And - before the question is asked - I've worked in the rail and nuclear industries.... I've been tested several times.... I've never failed. Despite several jobs in the Netherlands where 'it' is legal.... And no I don't think I've ever "been lucky" - but I have been 'exposed'...

That is true for a urine test.
But not for a hair test with an unwashed sample.
I would also like to point-out that a positive test result, even if low on the scale, results in awkward questions...and of course....finding on return to the ¨welfare station¨, at 2 in the morning with a temperature of minus 5, that you are required to provide a random urine test...

No one is forced to work in these industries.

You accept the job (with its decent pay and good job security) on the understanding that there is Zero tolerance.
Its no big deal

quote=steve e ashton]
And just because the rail industry chooses to apply and enforce a 'zero tolerance' standard... without any evidence of any improved safety .... does not mean we all need to adopt the same standard.... Blind rule following is NOT conducive to good H&S.. (In my opinion)

.

Walker: for starters - and links to a lot of research (mainly in the U.S.A) - see here: https://www.google.co.uk...mp;bvm=bv.67720277,d.ZWU

If the link doesn't work, the paper is called Drug Testing and Workplace Accidents, author is Paul Rountree, M.D. A quick google should bring up the pdf.

I don't want to post loads of quotes from this paper (which examines the evidence or lack of it by assessing the research). Suffice only to leave one quote: "Unfortunately there remains little scientific evidence of a substantial association between workplace accidents, injury, and drug or alcohol use.". Inclusion of the word 'unfortunately' in this quote shows clearly the authors bias.. The same bias is evident in many of the original research papers. People set out to 'prove' that drug (mis)use causes accidents but were unable to do so.

It may seem 'intuitive' - but we should not assume just on that basis. At one time intuitively it may have been thought that the world was flat....

John J has the right of it - we should be concentrating on impairment. Not drug use.

Steve

Not sure what you mean John. The current legal limits for drink and drugs are based on the level the majority of the population would become impaired.

So what happens with those on prescription medication that will show a positive?

Funny. That link no longer works. Shudda checked first. Oh well, just google ¨Network Rail Drugs & Alcohol Policy Booklet¨

This this is very interesting, but I think you will find the FBI (and similar agencies in the UK) have a zero tolerance drug policy with regular drug testing as part of achieving and maintaining personal integrity to pass very high security clearance standards - and such policies are not due to H&S concerns

The D&A tester will ask if you are on any medication before the D&A test. Certain medication such as Nurofen Plus contain codeine which is a derivative of cocaine. This can be screened out during testing in a lab.

Prescribed medication should also be declared to your Line Manager if you are deemed safety critical personnel.

There's a trend which is substantially influenced by those who make money out of D&A testing, despite international research finding no link between recreational usage and accidents at work.

See e.g. "Work-related Alcohol and Drug Use" http://www.safeworkaustr...orWorkIssue_2007_PDF.pdf

and RR193 "The scale and impact of illegal drug use by workers"