Alcohol testing in the workplace
Drug testing in the workplace is usually undertaken using a breath meter. There are other methods, such as testing blood, saliva and urine samples, but the breath meter is accurate, gives instant results, is easy to use, is non invasive to the donor and is relatively inexpensive.
Alcohol testing in the workplace should always be introduced in conjunction with a substance misuse policy or alcohol policy. The policy should specify the level of alcohol detection which will result in positive or 'fail' result, the action that will be taken following a positive result, who will be tested and under what circumstances.
Legal limits
The legal alcohol limit for driving a car is 80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood. Some industries, such as the rail and airline industries have set more onerous limits of 29mg and 20mg respectively. Limits often reflect the safety-critical nature of an industry, but must always be agreed with employee representatives before testing is undertaken in the workplace.
Suppliers
There are many suppliers of alcohol testing devices. When choosing a supplier, consider suppliers who have UKAS (United Kingdom Accreditation Service) accreditation.
Keyclear have provided independent advice to many organisations, including the world's largest transport company. Our knowledgeable and experienced consultants are totally independent of all drug testing organisations and are consequently well positioned to offer best advice.
