DB30 International Legal and Ethics issues in Business

At a minimum, each student will be expected to post an original and thoughtful response to the DB question and contribute to the weekly dialogue by responding to at least two other posts from students. The first contribution must be posted before midnight (Central Time) on Wednesday of each week. Two additional responses are required after Wednesday of each week. Students are highly encouraged to engage on the Discussion Board early and often, as that is the primary way the university tracks class attendance and participation.

The purpose of the Discussion Board is to allow students to learn through sharing ideas and experiences as they relate to course content and the DB question. Because it is not possible to engage in two-way dialogue after a conversation has ended, no posts to the DB will be accepted after the end of each unit.

For this Discussion Board assignment, consider the following statement:

Drug use is information that is rightfully private and only in exceptional cases can an employer claim a right to know about such use.

Post a response to the Discussion Board that either defends or opposes this statement.

Discussion Board Assignment Guidelines:

Determine your stance on the issue of drug testing and employee drug use, and in 3–5 paragraphs, write how you feel about the issue.

You may use the following questions to help outline your response:

Do employers always have a right to know about employee drug use?

What if the drug use has no effect on employee performance?

What if the drug use constitutes a serious health risk?

How would you (as a manager) address the issue of employee drug use?

Post a new topic to the Discussion Board that contains your drug use argument. Respond to two other students’ posts on the Discussion Board, and explain to them why you agree or disagree with their position. 

Your submitted assignment (60 points) should include the following:

40 Points Your Discussion Board topic containing your argument regarding employee privacy and drug use

20 Points Your responses to two other students’ Discussion Board posts

In your own words, please post a response to the Discussion Board and comment on other postings. You will be graded on the quality of your postings.

 

 Response to the classmmates posts:

 

Classmmate 1

DISCUSSION BOARD – MAIN POST

According to an article published by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, almost 75% of illegal drug users are employed, as well as heavy alcohol users.  Many companies implement drug free programs to cut down on the accidents in the workplace, turnover rates, absenteeism by employees, and to increase productivity (www.drugabuse.gov).

Drug screening for pre-employment regulations differ from state to state.  In some states, like California and Michigan, the job must be offered to the applicant first before a drug screening can be administered (www.chron.com).  In Alabama and Florida, the applicant can be given a drug screening as part of the application process.  The employer has to notify the applicant that a drug screening is part of the application process in advance and if the applicant refuses to take the drug test it is considered an automatic failure.

Companies drug test to help keep their worker’s compensation costs down.  Most Companies have a random drug testing policy in place to ward off drug users after they are hired.  They have the information in writing in their Employee Handbooks so that no employee can say that they were discriminated against.

I feel that it is good for employers to have random drug screening for their employees, especially the companies that are high risk of human fatality.  These companies would include airlines, public transportation, school bus drivers, charter bus drivers, doctors, and where heavy machinery operations are used (MUSE).

I worked for a company that manufactured auto parts and we had a “DRUG FREE WORKPLACE.”  Some of the machinery we worked with was very dangerous and you had to have all your senses when operating them.  Our managers would stress to us continuously to be careful and to work at a steady pace.  When an operator was on a prescription drug that interfered with their performance, they were to inform their manager and bring the prescription bottle (as evidence).  That employee was assigned to moving parts from department to department for the time being, inspecting parts, or a job that didn’t involve machinery.  This was for the safety of that employee and the other employees working around him/her.  They could not return to their post until they returned to work with a doctor’s note saying that they were no longer taking that prescription and were cleared to return to full duty.  I agreed with this practice. 

I also agreed with the practice of random drug testing that the company had in place.  We had a couple of employees (that I know of myself) that used illegal drugs at home.  They slipped through the random drug screening a few times, but finally their number was called.  They would come into work high and I prayed for their safety all day while doing my job.  I was also thankful that they did not work around me.

References

M.U.S.E. (2013). Rights of Employers and Employees.  Retrieved November 23, 2014, from ERIC database. (MU13182)

National Institute on Drug Abuse, (2008), Drug-free Workplace Resources, Retrieved November 23, 2014 from http://www.drugabuse.gov/related-topics/drug-testing/drug-free-workplace-resources

Sullivan, D., (2014), Rights Regarding Pre-Employment Drug Testing, Retrieved November 25, 2014 from http://work.chron.com/rights-regarding-preemployment-drug-testing-13271.html

 

 

 

Classmmate 2

I think that pre-employment drug screenings are a right of any employer. If you fail a drug test then you should not be hired. I also believe it is a good thing to do random drug testing of employees that are already with the company. This to me is ethical if you are an employer that does not want to risk certain business circumstances if an employee is on drugs. However, if an employer just suspects that an employee is on drugs that day this may be different. If the employee is forced to take a drug test for that reason and passes then it looks bad on the employer.  It does not matter if a drug has no effect on employee performance. Drugs are illegal and should not be used. Some employees may have to take certain drugs due to their own medical health. What if those drugs they have to take makes them appear disorted.Drugs like painkillers or sedatives, for example, may affect an employee’s performance. It also may affect their own health if they take too much of it or overdose with it. As a manager I would use pre-employment drug screen tests and random drug testing. If I suspect an employee is on drugs then I would be honest with them about their noticeable behavior, talk with them, or send them home.