POLICY REPORT

HUMAN RESOURCES

Date: February 10, 1998

Author/Local: J. Beckett/7580

CC File No: 1306

TO: Standing Committee on City Services and Budgets

FROM: Director of Human Resources on behalf of the Corporate Management Team

SUBJECT: Substance Abuse Policy

RECOMMENDATION

A. THAT Council approve the attached Substance Abuse Policy to apply to all employees of the City of Vancouver; and

B.THAT the Police, Library and Park Boards be advised of Council’s action and be requested to consider adopting the policy.

CITY MANAGER’S COMMENTS

The City Manager RECOMMENDS approval of A & B.

COUNCIL POLICY

There is no applicable Council policy.

BACKGROUND

Supervisors and managers made us aware of their need for a formal written policy that stated the use of mood-altering substances in the workplace was intolerable and confirmation that it applied to all employees. There are rules and regulations in place now but their enforcement is difficult as they are subject to various interpretations and inconsistently applied across the organization.

In addition, alcoholism and drug dependencies are considered to be treatable diseases. Eighty percent of the general population drinks alcohol; ten percent suffer from alcoholism. It isestimated that 7% of the Canadian workforce uses or abuses drugs. Such dependencies show themselves in the workplace in the form of poor work performance, poor attendance and impairment, leading in turn to poor morale, reduced productivity, damaged equipment and greater risk of injury to self and fellow workers. A corporate policy and consistent practices across the organization will provide an additional tool for dealing with individuals in the workplace who suffer from these dependencies and for those who disregard known regulations.

DISCUSSION

Society today is less tolerant of individuals who abuse substances and of employers who condone drug or alcohol use in the workplace. The need to adopt a comprehensive policy was brought to the attention of the Corporate Management Team through a number of venues:

1. Supervisory requests for clear direction and policy;

2. Employee involvement work processes where employees, union representatives and management representatives identified substance use on the job as a major concern;

3. The City’s Employee Assistance Programme and our medical specialist in substance addiction have indicated such a policy would assist them in dealing with our employees with substance abuse problems;

4. As we deal with health, safety and rehabilitation in a more coordinated fashion, it is apparent that in some City operations this is a serious issue that requires resolve;

5. A 1996 court decision (Nike) puts the City at risk if it allows drinking on its premises during working hours, and

6. A recent WCB order requiring us to develop supplementary instructions for all staff in light of workplace incidents in the past two years.

While most organizations in the private sector have similar comprehensive policies, most government agencies do not. This is due, in part, to the controversial nature of the subject. The attached policy was developed through an extensive two-year consultation process. The City examined what was happening in other municipalities and large Canadian organizations. In order to identify needs and concerns regarding a substance abuse policy, consultation occurred with all employee groups, all City management groups, staff of the Employee Assistance Programme, the EEO office, legal counsel, the City Occupational Health Physician and medical specialists in substance addiction. The unions, by and large, support the establishment of the policy, although they are not necessarily supportive of all of the provisions. Their concerns have been discussed with them and a number of modifications to the policy were made but not all of their concerns were or can be addressed.

The focus of this policy is three-fold:

1. Establish expected behaviour in the workplace and clarify the consequences of not meeting those expectations for all City employees;

2. Establish clear expectations for employees in "Safety Sensitive Positions"; and

3. Encourage employees who require help to seek it sooner.

Establish expected behaviour

There is a need to establish a consistent set of expectations of all employees and a consistent set of expectations of supervisors and managers when they are required to deal with individuals who are disregarding workplace rules or suffering from addiction. It is even necessary to identify that use of alcohol and drugs during the work day is not accepted at the City of Vancouver. Dealing with employees with substance addiction is difficult; they usually deny having a problem and for some supervisors it is easier to ignore the regular absenteeism and substandard performance that goes with substance abuse than it is to deal with it as it needs to be dealt with. This policy clarifies for everyone what the City’s expectations are of both employees and supervisors.

Establish Clear Expectations of Employees in "Safety Sensitive Positions"

Courts across North America have recognized that employer-based policies should not unduly infringe on employees’ personal lives. However, exceptions have been made for Safety Sensitive Positions where higher standards of conduct are expected due to the potential for serious harm to co-workers, the employer or the public. Safety Sensitive Positions are defined as those "in which an employee has control of processes or equipment that pose a significant hazard to themselves, their co-workers and/or the general public". Safety Sensitive Positions in the City are defined as positions in which employees enter into situations or have control of processes or equipment that pose a significant hazard to themselves, their co-workers and/or the general public.

These positions are undefined at this time. Each member of the Corporate Management Team will identify the positions in their operations that fall within this category.

Encourage employees who require help to seek it sooner

The City of Vancouver will take steps to assist its employee to access the treatment necessary to deal with their disease. The policy aims to assist employees to seek treatment to manage their disease in a timely fashion. Better management of their disease will allow these employees to become productive, contributing members of the City’s work force. Dependency on drugs or alcohol is both treatable and preventable. One of the unfortunate hallmarks of these diseases is denial by the employee that a problemexists at all. Along with this policy, City supervisors will be provided with the information and tools they need to assist their employees with these problems and will be less prone to turning a blind eye to inappropriate behaviour and enabling employees with addiction problems to continue. There will always be the need to distinguish between disease requiring access to treatment and disregard for workplace rules.

IMPLEMENTATION PLAN

Upon approval of this policy, Human Resource Services will provide training to all supervisors and managers. A supervisor’s manual has already been produced in draft form. A training package and video will follow shortly. Training will be conducted in Engineering and, subject to Board approval, the Vancouver Park Board, then move to all other departments within the City, subject to approval of the appropriate Boards. This policy and the resulting expectations will be communicated to all employees through newsletters, pay statement distribution, crew talks, posters, and individual meetings.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

No direct costs are expected as a result of this policy. However, the City will experience indirect costs. City supervisors and managers will have the tools and support necessary to assist an employee in seeking treatment in a timely fashion. Each employee that seeks treatment will require time away from work to attend treatment. This time away from work will be covered by sick leave. The up-front cost of time away from work outweighs the long-term cost of the disruptive, non-productive behaviour of the employee in the workplace. Employees will pay the costs of their own treatment. Training costs will be absorbed in current budgets.

PERSONNEL IMPLICATIONS

The Substance Abuse Policy aims to assist employees to seek treatment to manage their disease. Better management of their disease will allow these employees to become productive, contributing members of a work team. It also provides supervisors and managers with guidelines when discipline is appropriate as a result of casual drinking when it occurs on the job or when there is disregard for rules and regulations. With the policy being applied consistently across the organization, there should be fewer grievances.

CONCLUSION

This report has been distributed to all civic union and employee group representatives. Approval of this Substance Abuse Policy will deliver a strong message to our employees and their managers; it confirms the City’s position that the use of mood-altering substances will not be tolerated in the workplace; it provides everyone with clear expectations and steps to follow to assist an employee to treatment; and employees may regain their lives while the City regains productive employees.

* * * * *

CITY OF VANCOUVER

SUBSTANCE ABUSE POLICY

February 1998

POLICY

The City of Vancouver recognizes alcohol and substance addiction as a treatable disease. It is committed to the health and safety of its employees through a policy that will not tolerate substance abuse where such abuse affects individual employee job performance.

Society no longer tolerates the misuse of alcohol , drugs or medications. The City of Vancouver recognizes that it and its employees have the responsibility to ensure the workplace remains free from adverse health effects. This policy is designed to provide clearer expectations of supervisors and employees and encourage employees with substance use problems to seek help to address their problem.

The use of illicit drugs, the inappropriate use of alcohol, and the misuse of medications and other substances can have serious adverse effects on an employee’s health, safety and job performance. Misuse of these substances often negatively impacts other employees, customers, and the community. Each employee has a personal responsibility to themselves, other employees and the City to help eliminate drug and alcohol misuse in the workplace. Alcohol or drug dependency is a treatable condition and early intervention greatly improves the probability of lasting recovery.

This policy is put into motion when an employee’s abuse of any mood altering substance has a negative impact on the job. When an employee's work is found to be adversely affected or if in the opinion of the supervisor the employee’s safety or the safety of others is at risk by the influence of a mood altering substance, whether legal or illegal, that employee will be subject to discipline up to and including termination. This policy applies to all employees of the City.

EMPLOYEE RESPONSIBILITIES

As a City employee, you are expected to:

·promote a working environment that does not tolerate the inappropriate use of alcohol, illegal drugs or misuse of medications;

·seek assistance, if required, by way of a confidential assessment, counselling and referral through the Employee Assistance Program;

·ensure you do not consume during, or report to work under, the influence of alcohol, illicit drugs or misuse of medications. For those employees in a *safety sensitive position:

1. No amount of alcohol or illegal drugs in the bloodstream will be tolerated; and

2. Mind or mood altering medications must be controlled to ensure it does not adversely affect the work being done;

·ensure that your attendance and job performance do not suffer because of the use of drugs, alcohol or misuse of medications.

* A safety sensitive position is defined as a position in which an employee enters into situations or has control of processes or equipment that pose a significant hazard to themselves, their co-workers and/or the general public.

EMPLOYER RESPONSIBILITIES

The City recognizes that it has a leadership role to play in any case of inappropriate substance use or substance abuse among its employees. Key to that leadership role is the promotion of substance abuse programs for treatment and ongoing management of job performance.

The City of Vancouver will:

·provide a program emphasizing awareness, education and training, and voluntary self-referral for assistance;

·support the rehabilitation and return to work of employees who have had problems with alcohol, illegal drug or medication dependency within the principles of "duty to accommodate";

·emphasize the process of managing performance on the job;

·provide sickness and disability benefits to the extent of eligibility when:

a) an employee is cooperating fully in a treatment program and requires

time away from work for program appointments;

b)an employee is unable to work, but is following a prescribed treatment program under medical supervision and is cooperating fully.

All City employees will be made aware of this policy through brochures, staff meetings, documented crew talks & pay statement attachments. Gross violations of this policy may be subject to immediatetermination. When an employee allows his or her consumption of substances to negatively impact on the job, the following steps are appropriate:

STEP 1 The first incident will result in the employee being sent home for the balance of the day without pay. The supervisor will issue a warning letter which will reference the Employee Assistance Program, a copy of the letter will be placed on the employee’s file.

STEP 2 The second incident will bring about a ten day suspension with another letter outlining the various alternatives for obtaining help, including the Employee Assistance Program.

STEP 3The third occasion will bring about a 90 day suspension with a rigid return to work agreement. All substance abuse treatment needs will be determined by an external physician chosen by the employee from a list of approved addiction treatment professionals. The particular recovery needs of the employee will also be reviewed by that physician.

Prior to the employee’s return to work, they must provide letters to the City attesting to their cooperative involvement in each aspect of their recovery. If there are any negative responses at the end of the 90 day suspension the employee will be immediately terminated from employment.

The return to work agreement is a document signed by the employee, Supervisor, Union and treating professional. Any deviations from or failure to sign the return to work agreement will result in immediate termination.

NOTE: This third step action is taken since the City feels that the employee has had two opportunities to resolve any substance abuse issues on their own. The Third Step is an assertive action step taken by the City in an attempt to protect its own interests as well as those of the employee.

(c) 1997 City of Vancouver