Worker Drug Use and Workplace Policies and Programs: Results from the 1994 and 1997 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse

Worker Drug Use and Workplace Policies and Programs: Results from the 1994 and 1997 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse

4.5 Discussion

In 1994, workers who reported no current illicit drug use were more likely than those who reported current illicit drug use to report that their workplace provided information about drug and alcohol use, had a written policy about drug and alcohol use, and had an EAP. The differences between drug users and non-users in their reporting of workplace drug information, written policy about drug and alcohol use, and employee assistance programs were not seen in 1997. One possible explanation for this difference is that in 1997, when the economy was strong, employers were more likely to hire workers regardless of the workers

drug use behavior.

Both the 1994 and the 1997 data indicated that small workplaces, i.e., those with fewer than 25 employees, were least likely to have information or a written policy about drug and alcohol use. Several factors may contribute to this: First, organizational size has been positively associated with formalization with increased size related to increased use of formal rules, according to the literature (Hall, et al., 1967). Second, the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 mandated that recipients of certain government contracts have written drug policies; this requirement is expected to have a greater impact on large organizations than on small ones. Third, some large organizations may not be doing business with the government currently but wish to leave the option open, and therefore adopt drug control policies at their workplaces. Fourth, other organizations, especially the medium-sized institutions and firms, may choose to follow their industry leaders and mimic their adopted policies (DiMaggio and Powell, 1983). Finally, small workplaces are more likely to be associated with small companies or institutions, which have fewer resource to implement aggressive policies.

Generally, the relationships were negative between the availability of the workplace information about drug and alcohol use or workplace written policy about drug or alcohol use and the employee drug use. Exceptions to these relationships do occur. For example, although a large proportion of the full-time workers, age 18-49, in the Transportation and Material Moving occupations reported that their employers provided information about drug or alcohol use (85.9%) or had a written policy about drug or alcohol use (83.3%), the prevalence rate of current illicit drug use among full-time workers, age 18-49, in this occupation was 10 percent, which was more than two percent points higher than the average prevalence rate among all full-time workers age 18-49. This exception may occur because less than half of full-time workers age 18-49 in the Transportation & Material Moving occupation reported that EAPs were available to them in 1997. In addition, employees working in the transportation and material moving occupations may have ample opportunities to use drugs, and the occupational subculture may further contribute to the workers' tendencies to use drugs.


Table 4.1 Percentage of Full-Time Workers, Age 18-49, Reporting That Their Workplace Provides Information, Has a Written Policy, or Maintains an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) Concerning Drug or Alcohol Use, by Establishment Size, 1994, 1997
	Information About Drug and Alcohol Use		Written Policy About Drug and Alcohol Use		Employee Assistance Program
Establishment Size	1994	1997	1994	1997	1994	1997
1994
Total	74.2	73.7	69.6	70.5	49.9	49.9
1-24 Employees	51.2	50.7	45.4	45.9	24.4	26.8
25-499 Employees	86.7	87.1	82.1	84.6	59.0	60.6
500+ Employees	93.8	92.3	91.3	90.4	82.5	75.4^a

^a Difference between 1994 and 1997 is statistically significant at the .05 level.

Source: Office of Applied Studies, SAMHSA, National Household Survey on Drug Abuse, 1994-B, 1997.


Table 4.2 Percentage of Full-Time Workers, Age 18-49, Reporting that Their Workplace Provides Information, Has a Written Policy, or Maintains an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) Concerning Drug or Alcohol Use, by Establishment Size and Current Illicit Drug Use, 1994 and 1997
	Information About Drug and Alcohol Use		Written Policy About Drug and Alcohol Use		Employee Assistance Program
Establishment Size	Current Illicit Drug Use	No Current Illicit Drug Use	Current Illicit Drug Use	No Current Illicit Drug Use	Current Illicit Drug Use	No Current Illicit Drug Use
1994
Total	62.1	75.2⁺⁺	57.2	70.6⁺⁺	34.5	51.1⁺⁺
1-24 Employees	43.2	52.2⁺	38.3	46.3	14.8	25.5⁺⁺
25-499 Employees	84.5	86.8	77.6	82.4	48.8	59.6
500+ Employees	92.3	93.9	91.6	91.3	86.2	82.2
1997
Total	67.5	74.2	64.0	71.0	43.2	50.5
1-24 Employees	41.8	51.5	35.8	46.9⁺	28.2^a	26.6
25-499 Employees	85.9	87.2	84.7	84.6	50.7	61.4⁺
500+ Employees	93.6	92.2	90.2	90.5	68.5^a	75.8^a

⁺ Difference between users and nonusers of drugs is statistically significant at the .05 level.

⁺⁺ Difference between users and nonusers is statistically significant at the .01 level.

^a Difference between 1994 and 1997 is statistically significant at the .05 level.

Source: Office of Applied Studies, SAMHSA, National Household Survey on Drug Abuse, 1994-B, 1997.


Table 4.3 Percentage of Full-Time Workers, Age 18-49, Reporting that Their Workplace Provides Information, Has a Written Policy, or Maintains an EAP Concerning Drug or Alcohol Use, by Establishment Size and Current Heavy Alcohol Drug Use, 1994 and 1997
	Information About Drug and Alcohol Use		Written Policy About Drug and Alcohol Use		Employee Assistance Program
Establishment Size	Current Heavy Alcohol Use	No Current Heavy Alcohol Use	Current Heavy Alcohol Use	No Current Heavy Alcohol Use	Current Heavy Alcohol Use	No Current Heavy Alcohol Use
1994
Total	69.9	74.6⁺	65.8	69.9	42.5	50.6
1-24 Employees	49.1	51.4	44.9	45.5	17.2	25.1⁺⁺
25-499 Employees	81.9	87.1	76.5	82.6	53.3	59.5
500+ Employees	97.6	93.5⁺	96.9	90.9⁺⁺	85.3	82.2
1997
Total	75.3	73.6	71.2	70.4	44.1	50.4
1-24 Employees	47.8	50.9	38.8	46.5	16.3	27.6⁺⁺
25-499 Employees	89.3	86.9	87.2^a	84.4	53.5	61.3
500+ Employees	93.5	92.0	95.4	90.0⁺	77.0	75.2^a

⁺ Difference between users and nonusers of drugs is statistically significant at the .05 level.

⁺⁺ Difference between users and nonusers is statistically significant at the .01 level.

^a Difference between 1994 and 1997 is statistically significant at the .05 level.

Source: Office of Applied Studies, SAMHSA, National Household Survey on Drug Abuse, 1994-B, 1997.

Table 4.4 Percentage of Full-Time Workers, Age 18-49, Reporting that Their Workplace Provides Information, Has a Written Policy, or Maintains an EAP Concerning Drug or Alcohol Use, by Occupation Categories, 1994 and 1997


Occupation Category	Information About Drug or Alcohol Use			Written Policy About Drug or Alcohol Use			Employee Assistance Program
Occupation Category	1994	1997	Diff.	1994	1997	Diff.	1994	1997	Diff.
Total	73.9	73.5	-0.5	69.3	70.3	1.0	49.6	49.7	0.1
Executive, Administrative & Managerial	76.9	71.5	-5.4	71.6	68.6	-3.0	54.6	53.6	-1.0
Professional Specialty	83.4	75.2	-8.2^a	76.7	72.4	-4.2	60.5	56.4	-4.1
Technicians & Related Support	83.5	78.6	-4.9	81.1	75.3	-5.8	62.1	61.7	-0.5
Sales	63.8	62.2	-1.6	59.2	59.3	0.1	36.7	43.3	6.6
Administrative Support	76.8	81.4	4.6	72.4	77.7	5.3	59.2	54.7	-4.5
Protective Service	97.0	95.2	-1.8	94.4	92.6	-1.8	85.5	79.7	-5.8
Food Preparation, Waiters, Waitresses & Bartenders	61.5	66.8	5.2	56.6	63.4	6.7	19.7	26.5	6.9
Other Service	69.4	67.1	-2.3	62.7	62.8	0.1	37.9	36.2	-1.7
Precision Production & Repair	68.9	75.3	6.4	64.3	72.4	8.1	45.9	48.4	2.5
Construction	56.8	60.0	3.2	54.7	55.6	0.9	24.5	30.3	5.8
Extractive & Precision Production	77.2	85.5	8.4	72.3	81.5	9.1	53.3	65.0	11.7
Machine Operators & Inspectors	76.0	79.6	3.5	73.6	76.3	2.7	53.0	52.7	-0.2
Transportation & Material Moving	87.2	85.9	-1.3	84.6	83.3	-1.3	54.6	46.5	-8.1
Handlers, Helpers & Laborers	63.2	71.7	8.5	60.7	70.0	9.3	38.2	51.3	13.0^a

^aDifference between 1994 and 1997 is statistically significant at the .05 level.

Source: Office of Applied Studies, SAMHSA, National Household Survey on Drug Abuse, 1994-B, 1997.