[speaker001:] What do you think about it?
[speaker002:] Well, I, I feel in light of some of the accidents and so forth that have happened lately, that I think there are some occupations that they should, such as the health field, the transportation field, uh, they're already doing it in the armed forces, where they handle weapons and so forth, uh, they do it to prisoners
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] so, I, I, uh, I, I, I feel like it should be mandatory in some professions, and I think if, if, uh, an employer feels that he wants to, to drug test employees and they don't like it, then they should not be employed there [LAUGHTER]. That was, you know, I would not mind it.
[speaker001:] Yeah, I, I especially agree that if it's an area where they could cause somebody else, you know
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] harm or injury, absolutely. And I don't have a problem at all with employers, uh, testing in the hiring [NOISE] process, but I, I, I don't, [NOISE] I don't have a problem with them too much, testing even after the fact, but [NOISE] I do a little bit where it, where it wouldn't hurt anybody. I don't know, sometimes I think they carry it a little bit too far.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh
[speaker001:] But,
[speaker002:] unless an employer has a reason to
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] believe that his, uh, the work competency of, of the employ-, employee is, is hurting the business.
[speaker001:] Right
[speaker002:] I mean maybe it's, uh,
[speaker001:] and then it's not a problem.
[speaker002:] Number one because generally if, if they are involved in that type of thing they are into theft
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] and as an employer, [NOISE] I would think that would be, and the first, it's not going to be wholesale because of the cost.
[speaker001:] Oh, absolutely.
[speaker002:] There's no way. But, but my concern is, uh, [NOISE] school bus drivers.
[speaker001:] Oh, yeah. Tr-, the train drivers,
[speaker002:] Um, I'm not even, I'm in education, I'm not even opposed to it for that. Uh, I'm concerned in the medical field.
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] I, I, I think they should screen for alcohol in these areas, too
[speaker001:] I wish they would.
[speaker002:] because I consider that a drug.
[speaker001:] I wish they would, and that, I think, is even probably more widely abused
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] by, you know, the masses
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] than, than drugs, so to speak.
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] So.
[speaker002:] But when you consider they could be driving an airplane
[speaker001:] Oh, I know.
[speaker002:] or driving a bus, or a train, um
[speaker001:] And,
[speaker002:] and it doesn't take that long. They don't have to be totally roaring drunk
[speaker001:] No.
[speaker002:] just a little
[speaker001:] Just, uh,
[speaker002:] off on their timing
[speaker001:] Yeah, and,
[speaker002:] could, could mean life.
[speaker001:] Now T I has the random testing policy
[speaker002:] Oh, okay.
[speaker001:] and, and, you know, our names or our employee numbers or whatever are in a, in a pool
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] so I've already been tested once when I was hired and, and once since they initiated this random testing program.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh, uh-huh.
[speaker001:] But I work with one girl who was tested, her name got, got randomly selected three times in six months
[speaker002:] Oh, my word.
[speaker001:] and I think that's the only reason I have a problem with it, when there's no, you know, there's no reason
[speaker002:] Control.
[speaker001:] to suspect someone, you know. That, that's getting a little bit, that's enough to make anybody paranoid [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] Right. Well, as long as you accept that it is a random, a random testing
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] uh, you know, to, to alleviate, that way you can't feel like somebody's out to get me.
[speaker001:] Right.
[speaker002:] If, it's almost like being selected for jury duty [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] You know, so your name came out of pot when they spun the wheel, that's, that's just the way it is.
[speaker001:] Either just the lucky or the unlucky one, depending on how you look at it.
[speaker002:] I would, I would rather have it that way, to know that I was chosen at random by a computer than to think that somebody turned me in
[speaker001:] Oh, absolutely,
[speaker002:] because I, I think there's, when you let other employees turn in people,
[speaker001:] There are so many people with, with their petty axes to grind
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] it could really get
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] out of hand.
[speaker002:] So, I, I, I would really rather know, however, there's got to be some backup to say that if, if somebody does observe you at, say at a party, uh, using drugs
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] I would think that it would be their obligation to report that.
[speaker001:] To report it, and I guess you'd report that to a supervisor, maybe
[speaker002:] Personnel, or something,
[speaker001:] anonymously or something
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] because I, I would feel very uncomfortable working with someone I knew was using either illegal drugs or abusing alcohol, I'd just
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] I'd feel really uncomfortable.
[speaker002:] Right. I don't know what kind of work you do, but there, there would be, even be a situation where you were at a machine and working with somebody that was that way.
[speaker001:] Yeah, we have, we have a lot of people who work on the line. I'm in accounting, so it wouldn't, you know
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] they couldn't hurt me with their ten key or something, but out on the line, they've got people working some
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] serious equipment.
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] So.
[speaker002:] It's, it's, I, I just think employers have to have, especially given today, the drug abuse that goes on, I just think employers have to have some kind of way to see that they're not being put at
[speaker001:] Put at risk.
[speaker002:] risk. *slash error
[speaker001:] I agree
[speaker002:] Because
[speaker001:] totally.
[speaker002:] they're the ones who are going to have the lawsuits, the insurance claims, et cetera, and, and I'm not sure but what some of the insurance claims aren't due to, uh, illnesses brought on by drug abuse or alcohol abuse.
[speaker001:] And in the long run, we're all paying for that
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] so it, I mean, it protects us in the long run hopefully
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] when they do that. I, I was trying to remember, there was a court case, uh, here where I live, just a few months ago. The city workers, they wanted to, um, the city government wanted to institute the random drug testing
[speaker002:] Uh.
[speaker001:] and the city workers, uh, took them to court to protest, saying that it invaded their, I guess, first a-, the, the search and seizure amendment
[speaker002:] Uh-huh, uh-huh.
[speaker001:] and it's still tied up in the legal channels. They haven't ruled on whether they can test them or not.
[speaker002:] Huh.
[speaker001:] So I'm curious especially since T I -s
[speaker002:] To see how that's,
[speaker001:] a local, you know, employer is also already doing it, seeing what they'll say about it especially since,
[speaker002:] Is it, is it, uh, just a small group of the employees that are concerned?
[speaker001:] Well, it's the whole, it's the whole city, seems like the whole group of city employees that's raising a stink over it.
[speaker002:] They, they just don't want to be drug tested.
[speaker001:] Yeah. So.
[speaker002:] You know, we've never, my husband and I have never been in a situation where somebody said you have to be drug tested.
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] Uh, my husband's retired from I R S agents.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] However, this isn't a problem that we have
[speaker001:] Right.
[speaker002:] either alcohol or drug, and so, we, we, in our minds we're thinking what's the big deal.
[speaker001:] Yeah, that's the way I looked at it. If I had something to hide, it's one thing, but I'm, you know, you know you don't, so it's not as big a deal, and you sometimes wonder when these people protest so much [LAUGHTER] whether they're really concerned
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] about their rights, or whether they're really concerned about something else.
[speaker002:] And, and then they say, well, if you give them the right to do this, then they're going to take some other right away from you, but I, I firm-,
[speaker001:] I don't believe that.
[speaker002:] I think that an employer has the right to ask you to do anything, and, of course, the big deal, one of the big deals now, too, is to, that when you, come into a company, as you sign a paper saying that I will go take a,