Drug-Free Workplace Program description

Drug-Free Workplace Program (DFWP) information

State Construction Contractors

Ohio law says all companies that bid or work on state construction jobs must have drug-free workplace programs — no matter how few or how many employees they have. This applies to contractors and all levels of subcontractors who want to work a State of Ohio construction project or who want to bid on and eventually provide labor services and/or supervise workers on state construction sites.

Click here for more information on state construction contractors

Is your company currently in approved status in the state construction contractor/subcontractor database? Click on the following link, then enter your Ohio workers’ compensation policy number and click search to find out.

State construction contractor look-up

Drug-Free Workplace Program (DFWP)

BWC's DFWP is an incentive program designed to help employers establish safer and more cost-effective workplaces. You can join hundreds of other Ohio employers by choosing to keep your employees safe and reduce the chance of an accident caused by substance use. The voluntary DFWP encourages employers to detect and deter substance use and misuse, and take appropriate corrective action.

Note: While participation in DFWP for most employers is voluntary, construction contractors and subcontractors are required to have a drug-free workplace program (a BWC program or comparable program) to bid on or work a state-administered construction contract/project.

BWC understands that small businesses typically have fewer resources available to implement a drug-free workplace program. That's why BWC created Drug-Free EZ (DF-EZ). Small businesses can participate in this program that has the same basic elements and integrity as the DFWP but with streamlined requirements and less paperwork.

Click here for more information on DF-EZ.

The problem?
The courts and the public are holding American employers responsible for the behavior of their substance-using employees. Not only do alcohol and other drugs affect profitability of companies, they also affect the health, safety and productivity of workers.

Consider these statistics.

Productivity — Substance users are 33 percent to 50 percent less productive.
Absenteeism — Users are absent an average of three weeks or more per year and are tardy three times more often than non-users.
Accidents — Users are three to four times more likely to have an accident on the job and five times more likely to file a workers’ compensation claim.
Medical claims — Substance users file 300 percent to 400 percent more costly medical claims.
Employee theft — An estimated 50 percent to 80 percent of all pilferage, theft and loss is due to substance-using employees.

Why participate?
Substance use is often the silent and unseen cause of work-related accidents. Unfortunately, employers and their employees don't realize it until it's too late.

Statistics from national studies show how costly substance use is within the workplace, and Ohio is no different. Estimates of the cost of substance use to employers vary, ranging from $7,000 to $25,000 annually per substance user.

The greatest value of this program is in its long-range benefits, rather than the discount itself. Implementing the DFWP is truly a good business decision for any employer.

Who's eligible to participate in DFWP?

Only state-fund employers may receive a discount. That includes private employers and public employer taxing districts with the exception of state agencies. However, although ineligible for premium discounts, self-insuring construction employers may apply to be included in the state construction contractor database. Ohio workers’ compensation coverage is required to be included in the state construction contractor database regardless of whether an employer is otherwise not required to hold Ohio coverage.
Employers must be in good standing with BWC in terms of policy coverage status, payment of premiums and other monies due BWC and have limited lapses in coverage.
Employers must have an active, reinstated or debtor-in-possession coverage status at the time they are approved to participate in the DFWP and throughout continued participation.
Employers must be current on premium payments as of March 31 for the application year that begins July 1, or must be current as of Sept. 30 for the application year that begins Jan. 1. BWC defines current as not more than 45 days past due on any and all undisputed premiums, assessments, penalties or monies otherwise due to any fund administered by BWC, including amounts due for retrospective rating at the time of application deadline.
Employers may not have cumulative lapses in workers’ compensation coverage in excess of 59 days within the last 18 months preceding application for DFWP.
Employers must not have previously completed their eligible four or five years of participation in DFWP. However, BWC permits employers no longer eligible for a drug-free discount to operate a comparable drug-free program for no discount but to allow bidding on or working State of Ohio public improvement/construction contracts.

Self-insuring employers and state agencies are not eligible for the discounts, but may receive technical assistance from BWC to establish a substance-free work environment.

These are the initial requirements for program eligibility. Employers determined to be ineligible may reapply in a subsequent program year, except for those determined to be ineligible based upon having an existing substance-free program for four or more years comparable to BWC’s DFWP Level 1.

What are the key components of DFWP?
DFWP is designed to help employers deter, detect and take corrective action related to substance use that affects workplace safety. Participants must develop a substance policy that describes their drug-free program. The policy should describe annual employee education and supervisor training, drug and alcohol testing, and employee assistance, which – along with the written policy – comprise the key components of any effective drug-free workplace program.

Program requirements

Written substance policy
Employee education
Supervisor training
Drug and alcohol testing
Employee assistance
10-Step Business Plan

For more details, order the Drug-Free Workplace Program Procedural Guide online, or call 1-800-OHIOBWC, and listen to the options.

Written substance policy
You will be able to review a sample/model policy that BWC will provide to show you how to structure your written drug-free policy. Then, you will be able to add the specifics for your business and take the policy to legal counsel for review – a cost savings over paying an employment law attorney to design the policy. A substance policy is a key element because it lays out all the ground rules and describes acceptable and unacceptable work behavior along with the consequences for violating the policy.

Back to program requirements

Employee education
DFWP incorporates awareness of the dangers of substance use in the workplace. Participating employers must offer each employee two hours initially within the first three months of initial program participation and two hours annually thereafter. You can contract with professionals to do substance educational awareness or, through a Training of Trainers course, you can do it yourself. The key is still to provide information on substance problems in the workplace to ALL employees and to not offer the same information year after year.

While a qualified/credentialed substance professional may present the educational material, it is possible for the employer to obtain these materials from a qualified source and have a manager present the information. However, questions raised by employees that the manager is not able to answer must go to a qualified substance professional for a response within two business days. Although a credentialed person does not have to present the information to your employees, it's important to use a qualified, credentialed person or anyone else who has experience in the substance education field to prepare the training content and act as a resource for you. A safety grant can help offset this expense.

Back to program requirements

Supervisor training
Skill-building training for all supervisors is four hours initially and two hours annually as refresher for supervisors who already have the four hours. You must use a trainer that is credentialed or qualified by experience in substance training for supervisors, so your supervisors can meet their responsibilities for supporting your program. Supervisor skill-building training includes:

Behavioral observation;
Documentation;
Appropriate and professional confrontation;
How to make referrals for testing;
How to make referrals to assistance.

Back to program requirements

Drug and alcohol testing
Additional choices provide greater flexibility for employers in terms of post-accident and follow-up testing. Employers will need to do:

100-percent, pre-employment drug testing (or new-hire testing or a combination of the two);
Reasonable suspicion drug and/or alcohol testing;
Post-accident drug and/or alcohol testing of anyone who may have caused or contributed to an accident;
Return-to-duty testing.

You do not have to conduct a post-accident test if all of the following circumstances exist:

The accident resulted in a minor injury, even when off-site medical attention was required;
There was no violation of work rules;
No “reasonable suspicion” related to the accident;
The accident is considered “normal” in relationship to the job functions.

Testing focuses on who may have caused or contributed to a work-related accident where there is an injury requiring off-site medical attention or damage to company property or vehicles in apparent excess of an amount the employer specifies in its written policy. An accident investigation is the key to determine whom to test and to determine when alcohol testing is appropriate along with a possible drug test.

The testing system used for DFWP is called “systems presence testing.” This form of testing for specified drugs and alcohol has the support of organized labor and is considered the fairest and most reliable testing system in existence.

Back to program requirements

Employee assistance
While BWC recommends the highest degree of assistance available for employees, we require employers participating in Level 1 to have a list of local assistance resources for employees and their families. BWC has compiled a list of local community resources for participating employers to use when someone comes forward voluntarily or tests positive. Level 2 of DFWP requires employers to add the pre-establishment of a working relationship with an employee assistance provided to whom an employee with a substance problem could be referred. Level 3 of DFWP requires employers to add health care coverage that includes the option of chemical dependency counseling.

Back to program requirements

10-Step Business Plan
Level 2 of DFWP requires five steps of BWC’s safety program, the10-Step Business Plan. Steps 1 (senior leadership); 2 (employee involvement); and 6 (safety and health process coordination and employer education) are all required along with two other steps. DFWP requires all ten steps for Level 3 employers.

Back to program requirements

Promotion of consortia
We encourage you to use the services of one-stop shop consortia to make it easier for you to meet our program requirements and to realize cost savings associated with economies of scale. We promote the development of these consortia by private-sector agencies, and you can get a list of consortia considered BWC-approved from your BWC employer services specialist.

What type of legal review do I need for my program and written substance policy?
We strongly urge employers to have the company’s program reviewed by competent legal counsel familiar with employment law and drug-free case law. Counsel should ensure adherence to applicable state laws, review the policy for protection of employer interests and employees’ rights and ensure adherence to any collective bargaining agreements in place. We expressly disclaim that any information provided by BWC staff or BWC documents constitutes legal advice.

How can I protect my employees' confidentiality rights?
Our drug-free workplace programs have built-in protections that ensure the privacy of all employees. We advise employers to send faxes that share individual testing information and employee assistance to a secure fax machine. We require all program documents concerning an individual’s testing and treatment results be kept separate from the general personnel file and secured. Other examples are found in BWC’s DFWP Technical Assistance Manual.

It is important for employers to note the new Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) appears to have limited but important implications for participating drug-free employers. BWC program requirements already strongly stress confidentiality of personal information and a signed consent-to-testing form for each employee as a term and condition of employment. Employers should follow the guidance provided by their legal counsel in terms of updating their consent-to-testing forms and any release of information forms to ensure adherence to HIPAA privacy requirements.

What discounts are available to employers for participating in the DFWP?
Employers participating in both DFWP and Premium Discount Program + will receive a discount for both programs based on their eligibility. In addition, employers can stack their DFWP discount on top of the benefit they receive for participating in group rating up to the maximum allowable for group participation.

Level 1 - 10-percent discount
Level 1 requires development of a written policy and certain types of testing: pre-employment and/or new hire; reasonable suspicion; post-accident; and follow-up. In addition, employers must do annual employee education and supervisor training and develop a list of local community resources that employees with problems can turn to for assistance.

Level 2 - 15-percent discount
Level 2 requires the same drug and alcohol testing requirements as Level 1 along with random drug testing of 10 percent of the average annual total work force. For public employers, random testing applies only to safety-sensitive positions or functions, as defined by the employer. Level 2 employers must offer annual employee education and supervisor training, and must expand available employee assistance. In addition, they must implement five steps of BWC’s 10-Step Business Plan, a highly coordinated safety program.

Level 3 - 20-percent discount
Level 3 requires 25-percent random drug testing, employee education, supervisor training and expanded employee assistance. Employers must also implement all 10 steps of the 10-Step Business Plan.

Who benefits?
Employers who implement the DFWP provide greater protection for all employees. Consider these benefits.

Increased productivity
Fewer accidents
Decreased severity of accidents
Reduction in use of workers' compensation medical benefits by substance users
Decrease in theft
Protecting the bottom line

Drug-Free Vendor Directory
BWC has partnered with The Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services (ODADAS) to offer Ohio employers a listing of companies and individuals qualified to supply services related to a drug-free workplace. Employers may access the DFWP Provider Directory to obtain contact information for providers by service such as employee education and supervisor training. Employers also can search by county served or statewide service availability.