SUBSTANCE ABUSE POLICY NETS POSITIVE RESULTS FOR EMPLOYEE-OWNED SERVICE COMPANY
WORKING PARTNERS
SCIENTECH Inc., in Idaho Falls, Idaho, is an employee-owned company that performs engineering and other technical services for clients in the energy, environment and defense fields. This includes nuclear safety engineering and operations reporting, as well as military software engineering and database management.
Founded in 1983, the company now has offices in 13 locations. It became employee owned in 1990 through an employee stock ownership program. It has grown steadily to its current size of 197 employees, with an average annual turnover rate of less that 7%. The company's technical mission accounts for its highly educated work force, more than one-half of whom hold college degrees.
Because SCIENTECH is a federal government contractor whose business concentrates on conducting safety reviews of government and commercial nuclear power plants and nuclear facilities, it cannot tolerate the threat to public safety posed by employee abuse of alcohol and other drugs. Consequently, the company has a strict and emphatic policy against substance abuse that includes stringent remedial action for violations.
SCIENTECH will not hire or retain employees who use, possess, or sell drugs, nor will it allow workers in the workplace if their use of legal substances such as alcohol or prescription drugs interferes with safety or productivity. Employees are subject to remedial action if it is confirmed that substance abuse is affecting their job performance, if they are found to possess drugs, if they are exhibiting signs of impairment from substance abuse, or if they are involved in an accident at work that reasonably raises the presumption of substance abuse.
If, while on the job, it is suspected that an employee's use of alcohol or other substances is compromising performance or safety, the individual must leave work immediately and receive a management warning in his or her personnel file.
If an employee subsequently tests positive under the quantitative chemical standards listed in the company's formal substance abuse policy or is found to possess drugs, the individual must undergo a mandatory medical evaluation. If treatment is indicated, continued employment is predicated upon the employee's accepting and successfully completing treatment.
Because SCIENTECH recognizes that substance abuse is a disease, it has chosen to implement a constructive policy that emphasizes education, prevention and rehabilitation over punitive action and encourages participation in recognized community-supported programs. SCIENTECH provides access to alcohol and drug treatment programs through its medical insurance. The company does not keep records of employees who use the benefit.
A source of pride to the company is that no SCIENTECH employees have filed Workers Compensation claims for treatment of or injuries resulting from substance abuse.