Impact of Employee Assistance Programs On Substance Abusers and Workplace Safety

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

9-1-2005

Department

Educational Leadership and School Counseling

Abstract

Businesses have dealt with substance abuse in different ways. Some organizations have established Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) to address these problems. One large national company chose to fire employees with positive drug screens, offer them EAP services, and then consider them for rehire after treatment. A study of performance records for 12,167 employees with safety incidents revealed that rehired employees had a significantly higher incident rate than the company's general population. Results indicated no difference in pre- and post-EAP incident rates for rehired workers, and the post-EAP incident rate fluctuated for 2 years. Implications of hiring/rehiring individuals who abuse drugs and alcohol are discussed, and suggestions are made for future research.

Publication Title

Journal of Employment Counseling

Volume

42

Issue

3

First Page

125

Last Page

132

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