Employer Balancing Act: Australians Smoke & Drink Less but

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Roy Morgan Research found during a study that 3 out of 5 Australians are now over eight or obese, despite smoking less and reducing alcohol consumption. What’s an employer to do? Sometimes it seems like it is impossible to win at times. One thing improves, and the situation gets worse in another area. It can be difficult to interpret the mixed signals that statistics deliver, but the message is clear that workplace drug and alcohol education should be integrated with wellness programs.

The Chief Executive of Roy Morgan, Michele Levine, explained the study conducted on the status of the nation’s healthy. The study found that less alcohol is being consumed (good news), the number of people smoking has declined (good news), but more Australians are overweight (bad news) and experiencing anxiety (bad news). The three out of five Australians who are overweight with a body mass index of over 25 are more likely to suffer health effects like high blood pressure, heart disease, and diabetes.

Health AND Safety Go Hand-in-Han

Maintaining a safe workplace is an excellent principle, but it requires the ability to balance all the factors that influence health and safety. Drugs and alcohol in the workplace are dangerous for many obvious reasons. For example, approximately 10 percent of workplace deaths and 20-25 percent of workplace accidents are related to drug and alcohol use. However, drugs and alcohol also increase the chances of one worker verbally or physically abusing one or more coworkers. General statistics show that 1 in 4 Australian employees have been verbally abused by an alcohol user, and 1 out of 50 have been physically abused by someone using illicit drugs.

Drug and alcohol users and smokers are more likely to experience medical problems and call in sick. They drive up health care costs which directly impacts the employer. When people are overweight, some of the same issues are at play. People who are overweight are more likely to take sick days or develop expensive health conditions or get fatigued easier. They tend to have less flexibility, which can impact their ability to do their job. It was estimated that the 2010 cost to Australia associated with people being overweight and obese was $21 billion, a number likely to have grown by now.

Fit For Duty Includes Fitness

What is an employer to do to balance all the factors that go into a safe workplace? Testing for drugs and alcohol is one strategy for maintaining a healthy and safe workplace. But being overweight and developing associated problems like high blood pressure and lack of flexibility impact worker safety too. Fit for work is influenced by multiple factors that includes drug/alcohol use, physical fitness, emotional distress, and fatigue.

Mediscreen can help employees better understand the consequences of lifestyle choices by providing them with health snapshots of their health status in critical areas like blood pressure, cholesterol level, lung airflow, and BMI. A wellness program coupled with a random drug and alcohol testing program gives employers the assurance they are going the extra step to maintain safe and more productive workplaces.

This article has been taken from : http://www.mediscreen.net.au/employer-balancing-act-australians-smoke-drink-less-but/

Whose Life are You Living, Anyway?

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We all like to think that we are living the lives which we chose for ourselves. But, the truth be told, we are living lives which have been chosen for us by many people, including ourselves. We are living lives of quiet desperation, inner turmoil, rising guilt, happiness, peace, joy, and a myriad of other emotions. You may think that you are living your life, but unless you choose each and every moment of the life you now live, you are probably allowing yourself to be swept along in one direction or another by various factors.

Whose life are you living, anyway? Is it yours?

In business, we like to think that we have total control over all situations and that we are the ones in charge. However, that is not necessarily the case. In fact, if there is one thing which we cannot control, and which has been proven time and time again that we cannot control, that is other people.

So, therefore, while systems may run your business, the truth is that you yourself do not. You may have been wise enough to set intelligent systems into place to form and retain the kind of business you desire, but it is not all you. You are not controlling every choice that every employee makes throughout your company. Therefore, if you would like some sort of assurance that your employees are obeying your orders, there are limited resources available to test this. However, you will always have drug testing.

Employee drug testing will always be necessary, and you will always find out a great deal through the use of it. You can regularly schedule onsite drug and alcohol screening through Mediscreen, an onsite drug testing company which is NATA accredited for medical testing. We believe in you running your business the way that you want to run it. We are here to help you make that happen by giving you the data you need about your employees to make important decisions. You have the options of drug testing and alcohol screening, as well as having the options in equipment from our sister company, CMM Technology. In addition to that, Mediscreen has stellar customer service.

This article has been taken from : http://www.mediscreen.net.au/whose-life-are-you-living-anyway/

Defensive and Offensive Game Plays

Mediscreen offers onsite drug and alcohol screening for businesses throughout Australia. Our services are especially valuable for international and local large companies, which may or may not already have an employee drug screening program already in place. We can take care of that part of your business, thoroughly. As for the rest of your operations, business can be competitive, and it is always best to have both defensive and offensive game play strategies for your company and its competitive edge.

Define your business. Yes, yes, we know that this is a basic strategy step, but it is important to have a clearly defined goal when you set up operations. Most businesses fail BECAUSE they lack this step. When asked what they do, they are unable to give a clearly defined account of their proceedings, and when asked to perform any of these services, they are unable to do so with a clearly defined set of instructions. There is no definitiveness to the process or even the goal itself.

Study your competition. See what they are doing and evaluate whether or not your business should likewise change. This is NOT an urge to change every time the competition does. This is a way to monitor and keep track of the progress your industry makes and the changes and morphs that it goes through, and it’s a way to decide how you want to position your company in the morph and post-morph.

Finally, there is definitely something to be said for sticking to your guns. In these times of social change and constant fluctuation, it is sometimes comforting to certain client bases to simply know that you do not change and that you are always strong and reliable and up-to-date. This is something which can be highly beneficial to you, and it is always something which you, as their leader, should believe in if they are to believe in it as well.
We return to Mediscreen, where we provide stellar onsite drug and alcohol testing for your business. Some workplace drug testing laws even require that you implement this for your employees, depending upon the industry in which you operate.

Continued Drug Abuse and Volatile Emotional Reactions

Unfortunately, many people continue drug abuse across substances and never actually rid themselves of their addiction. Drug addicts quit their drugs to become alcoholics, and vice versa. Since so many of your employees have most likely toyed with substance abuse in their earlier years, it is important to be able to pick out the ones who are still doing it, either from desire or necessity. Workplace drug testing helps you to ascertain what is at the bottom of the abuse cycle and who is working for you because they actually enjoy their jobs.

Volatile emotional reactions are the number two indicator for drug or alcohol abuse and if any of your employees are especially testy, that might be the option for you. Emotional reactions stem from the need to feel in better control of your own environment and, while this is a very basic and normal human need, it can spiral out of control very fast when your inhibitions are compromised. Don’t get us wrong. We know that that is the precise reason why you may be abusing the substances in the first place. However, this is not appropriate in a professional environment, and can cause a lot of harm among coworkers. While not every employee would like to think of their coworkers as members of their own families, the truth is that a professional working environment is very similar to that of a household, where organization and cooperation are sorely needed. Employee drug and alcohol testing is one way to really cinch the deal. With onsite drug and alcohol screening, you can determine who is cooperating with the others, and who is slack and unprofessional, essentially making themselves no longer a part of the family.

Continued drug abuse shows a perpetual unwillingness to turn one’s life around, and that is destructive in and of itself. This unwillingness to grow or to improve one’s lifestyle will…WILL…manifest itself in your own company. This would be a good time to think about eradicating the problem. Mediscreen provides drug screening, and this is what is needed in order to make sure that your company’s assets are protected.

Compartmentalization

Compartmentalization is a phenomenon which a person uses to not deal with certain parts of their lives. In their brain, they put various things into walled-off compartments, and discreetly shut the door on those rooms. Thus, they do not have to actually think about or deal with something right away and, while they do not actually ignore that such-and-such a situation, person, or circumstance exists, they only have to deal with it for very short periods of time, and then they can walk away, shut the door to that room, and wall it off completely. People who are especially talented with that technique tend to be non-confrontational, weak emotionally, and desirous of peace for everyone. Drama, even positive drama, never enters their lives, and they never seek that out. Compartmentalization is used by them to survive and keep their own sanity in situations that they do not feel able to or inclined to handle.

Unfortunately, this leads to frustration in others who need that individual to deal with reality in the here and now. It causes many problems, because they do not become accustomed to working with reality and with building and interacting in relationships. It is effectively a very strong form of denial. It is shutting themselves off from everyone else, until only their tiny little world exists.

Drug and alcohol screening is designed to engage employees in the real world and to give you a set of hard data with which you can discern which employees are engaging with their reality and their work environment, and which are shutting themselves off through the use of drugs or alcohol. Workplace drug testing allows you to look at your collection of workers and to evaluate how well they are interested in, invested in, and contributing to your business. If they test positive on drug tests or alcohol breathalyser tests, then they may be simply showing up to work to make money, and have no interest in the sales of the products themselves or in the services which you offer. Look up onsite drug and alcohol testing services in Australia by checking out our website. Mediscreen delivers onsite drug and alcohol screening all over the nation.

Company Policies for New Drug Testing Methods

When you are switching over your company policies from lab testing to onsite drug and alcohol screening, you will have to make some changes to your business plan. However, you will fortunately not have to change things so much as you will just have to make some additions to the business plan. What are some things which you should add to the company business plan and how can you alter them to specifically apply to onsite drug and alcohol screening?

Begin with a standard drug screening plan. This written procedure should include a basic, standard guide on both drug and alcohol testing, as well as both types of drug tests, urine and saliva. This can be a simple copy from standard sheets which are available for business use, or it can be specifically tailored to your organization, especially if you have non-standard business plan or if your organization is very large. Make sure that the basic foundation of your employee testing plan is in place first and that it is strong and flexible.

Interact with Mediscreen. Next, call our offices and obtain thorough and exhaustive information about our specialized onsite drug and alcohol testing which is available through our company. This way, you know what to expect from onsite screening procedures, and you can then take the next step in adding this information to your existing drug and alcohol screening plan. Be sure to include any details which will replace (rather than simply add on to) standard employee laboratory testing.

Add the details after experiencing onsite testing a few times. This gives you some firsthand experience with the procedures involved, including storing your own employee records on your jobsite, and helps you to understand what to expect and various details you will need to add to the company plan. There is nothing quite like real life experience to refine written detail.

Mediscreen offers onsite drug and alcohol testing to companies all over Australia. We are based in Perth, and our phone lines are always manned by informed operators who will be able to answer any questions which you may have about the procedures, even just a quick, “What is it exactly that you can do for me?” Call Mediscreen today

Alcohol and Drug Testing as Component of OWIP

In many cases, organisations approach alcohol and drug testing as a program primarily in place to “catch” violators. The testing program becomes a tool for punishment rather than a means of promoting workplace safety. Though workplace drug testing programs can certainly identify workers using illicit substances or alcohol, focusing only on catching individual workers can ignore many factors that influence worker substance abuse. By concentrating on detecting violators, a prime opportunity is missed to promote a positive and healthy organisation wide environment.

In other words, instead of viewing the alcohol and drug testing program as punitive, it can become an integral component of a workplace health initiative. This approach promotes a drug and alcohol free workplace, while also helping employees understand that substance abuse is a lifestyle, and not just a workplace, issue. People do not have clear lines between their work and personal lives, meaning they overlap. While prohibiting drugs and alcohol in the workplace is important for workplace safety, it does not educate people on the harm that they cause themselves and others when using the substances.

One Link in the Healthy Living Campaign

An organisation wide improvement program benefits the business and the workers.  Developing an alcohol and drug workplace policy should be one link in a campaign to educate and train workers in best practices for developing and maintaining healthy lifestyles. Instead of focusing only on the impact of drugs on the body or alcohol on the brain, an improvement program will address many lifestyle factors that impact workers. For example, some companies incorporate training on the dangers of alcohol and drug use in a program focused on healthy diets and exercise. People who are concerned with taking care of their bodies through diet and exercise are much less likely to use drugs and alcohol.

Focusing on harm minimisation rather than punishment is also more likely to garner compliance. Employee assistance programs (EAPS) and health promotion programs (HPPs) can include a number of components of which drug and alcohol abuse education is just one. For example, employers may:

• Offer stress management workshops
• Provide employee access to counselling for substance abuse, family issues, stress etc.
• Provide safety training
• Hold supervisor-employee sessions to facilitate conversations about workplace concerns
• Conduct  regular review of workplace factors that may create employee stress, i.e. schedules, production schedules, staffing etc
• Pay for employee memberships at a gym or fitness centre
• Train supervisors on alcohol and drug policy while also giving supervisors a role in the organisation wide health initiative
• Contract with an outside medical agency to provide occupational health services and health screening

Healthy Lifestyles

By developing a companywide culture that promotes healthy lifestyles, the Onsite Drug and Alcohol Screening is not viewed as a way for the employer to catch and punish workers who violate company rules. Instead it is seen as a natural component of a healthy living program. Employers accrue a number of benefits from this approach. These benefits include increased productivity, fewer missed days of work, lower medical expenses, and improved workplace safety.

Onsite Drug and Alcohol Screening Today

Today, Drug Testing Australia is part of normal practice, but you are still likely to hear some complaints from your employees for having to do it, either because they occasionally abuse substances themselves, or because they are insecure enough that they believe that drug testing is a threat to their job somehow, even if they could not possible be fired for it. While you may have been implementing employee drug and alcohol testing long enough to know to ignore such complaints, there IS a level of complaining which you should not ignore. It is the social norm to feel put upon and dissension can spread among people rather quickly. Do NOT take someone aside and lecture them about their verbal complaints on the jobsite. Rather, pick out several people publicly, in front of everyone else, and ask them their concerns with the Onsite Drug and Alcohol Screening policies of the business, and most importantly, INTERACT with them on this. Do not keep them from knowing your thoughts or from knowing how open to their ideas you are. Take what they say very seriously and discuss it with them, always interacting, in order to absolutely positively make sure that they understand that they have been heard.

If you have experienced high employee complaining and high employee turnover in the past, you may find it emotionally less taxing to simply put a barrier or space or separation between yourself and your employees, but in the long run this is unwise. Your coworkers and employees work for you, not for themselves. They need to feel that their work has value, and not that they are just another drone worker employed in the line of hard labor. They need to feel that they themselves, as people, are needed, and that you yourself, as a person, are invested in them specifically and in their interests as a whole.

Mediscreen provides onsite drug and alcohol testing services to businesses all over Australia. Onsite drug testing helps employees feel even further appreciated, because it saves them time and money and effort that they would normally have to take in going to a laboratory.