Human Resource Blog

Drug Free Policy in Kansas

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One of our best employees has rheumatoid arthritis and frequently takes drugs at work. We are a

Kansas drug-free workplace. Is there any way to avoid firing her?

Okay, take a deep breath. Being a drug-free workplace means that you don’t allow the abuse of legal drugs or the use of illegal drugs at the workplace. It does not mean that you have to fire every employee who swallows a pill.

Think about it for a minute. Would you fire an employee who took an aspirin for a headache? Would you fire a female employee who took her daily birth control pill at her desk, or on her break? Do you prohibit employees from coming to work under the influence of blood pressure medication prescribed by their doctor? 

Would you prohibit a diabetic employee from using insulin at work?

The answer is no, of course. All of these people have valid medical reasons for taking drugs, and they are all perfectly acceptable in the workplace. 

In fact, if you did fire these employees, most of them would have good reason to sue you under  ADA, the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Your employee is probably on a number of medications to reduce inflammation and control pain. As long as they are prescribed by her doctor, and used according to directions, they are none of your concern.

The hallmarks of a good anti-drug policy in the workplace are that it is fair, understood by employees and supervisors alike, and that it is enforced uniformly. A rule that punished one of your best employees unreasonably would not be fair.

The major purpose of establishing a drug-free workplace is to prevent the use of marijuana, cocaine, heroin and other illegal drugs. A second purpose is to eliminate the abuse of prescription drugs like Oxycontin and amphetamines.

In the interest of fairness, you may want to ask the employee with rheumatoid arthritis to bring a note from her doctor stating that she has a medical condition that requires her to take medication from time to time. There is no reason for you to know what the medical condition is, or what medical condition she is taking it for. (By the way, if you do happen to learn either of those facts, they are both covered under HIPAA. Which means that you cannot share that information with other employees, or anyone else.) Just be certain that if you request this information for one employee, you treat other employees the same way.