A legally-sound substance abuse policy that is communicated and available to company employees, alongside the correct equipment and procedures are paramount in sectors where “presence of mind and clear judgement could be the difference between life or death”, says medical equipment supplier ALCO-Safe MD Rhys Evans.

He says it is important to have a complete solution to manage substance abuse in the workplace, rather than just using breathalysers to catch people that have been drinking.

“The correct equipment and procedures must be adopted and those that are going to conduct the testing need to be formally trained and assessed to show competence,” he states. 

He laments that many owners and managers remain focused on the “compliance exercise” of conducting daily breathalyser tests, rather than their adopting a “people first, risk prevention” mindset.

The reality is that alcohol abuse in South Africa is an ever-increasing challenge, Evans stresses, emphasising that the correlation between accidents rates and intoxication is “extraordinarily high”.

“Effective implementation requires time, sustained testing and the consistent enforcement of the substance abuse policy,” he adds.

Importantly monitoring the number of individuals who test positive over specified periods, along with the subsequent reductions in these figures, provides compelling evidence of the system’s efficacy.

Further, some organisations have observed significant decreases in absenteeism coupled with increased productivity following several months of mandatory testing.

These represent additional advantages that are not always anticipated when considering alcohol testing options.

Evans explains that, besides needing to replace or repair equipment, the downtime and delays in production owing to incidents and injuries have considerably high monetary implications as well. “The cost of good breathalysers and testing equipment is very low in comparison.”

Therefore, companies should “never choose a breathalyser solely based on cost if more accurate and reliable instruments are available”, Evans notes.

“Ethically, employees deserve to be assessed using equipment that ensures precise results, holds proper accreditation to verify its accuracy and reliability, and has been properly calibrated to maintain performance throughout the year. Budget considerations should not compromise the quality and integrity of alcohol testing,” he insists.

Evans notes that many owners believe that a calibration certificate means the results on their breathalysers are accurate.

However, the calibration certificate must be compliant with South African National Accreditation System regulations, and the information provided on the certificate may prove that a particular breathalyser is not suitable for a specific workplace, or that its readings are not accurate or cannot be trusted.

He concludes that a better understanding of these certificates is needed, alongside quality equipment and effective implementation of testing programmes.