Last updated : December 23, 2024
There is a significant amount of evidence that illustrates the fact that regular drug testing is a net win for employers in Atlanta. Benefits including better safety, productivity and employee morale come just through testing, but there are additional benefits when that testing is done by a mobile drug testing company with experience and a full range of services that come cheaper overall than trying to go the traditional route with off-site labs.
Atlanta’s workforce in danger of drug abuse
As of 2013, a federal report found that methamphetamine and heroin use are on the rise in Atlanta. This is similar to the rest of the country, especially the uptick in heroin. Atlanta’s standing as one of the lower ranking large cities in the nation when it comes to prescription drug abuse doesn’t mean drugs aren’t a danger and as we just mentioned, the numbers are rising—it just happens to be the across the country, which means drug use is increasing. It’s no surprise when attitudes toward illegal drugs are softening, thanks in part to the misinformation being promoted for drugs like marijuana.
As for meth and heroin, both of those drugs are highly addictive and can cause significant impairment in the day to day functioning of their users. The possible effects are both mental and physical, and both drugs are amenable to fairly simple testing for detection. Those are two drugs that Atlanta business owners are not looking forward to seeing more of in the workplace.
Safety first
Users of both methamphetamine and heroin experience inattentiveness, distractions, and distortions in their perception of risk and their physical space. That puts them at a high risk of disorientation and making mistakes at work and the danger increases when that type of activity takes place in manufacturing and transportation industries. Every workplace will see a reduction in accidents and workers’ compensation claims, even if they’re already rare, but places with heavy equipment—where mistakes can put the user and others at extreme risk—unsurprisingly see the biggest benefit from drug testing.
It’s almost an imperative for a business owner in those industries to implement a plan. Even if the effects of drug abuse do not result in an accident that threatens life and limb, they certainly reduce productivity and increase absenteeism among the people who use them. Every single workplace accident caused by drug abuse had a chance to be prevented with a proper plan in place. Those without a plan are taking a large risk in liability, but those businesses are also taking liberty with employee safety.
It’s effective
Drug testing programs have been shown to counteract those negative effects. Regular and rigorous testing is associated with higher productivity, better attendance, and lower rates of accidents among workers. That means not only does implementation reduce workplace hazard risks, it makes the business more effective—even a small investment in drug testing and a modest plan translates into major returns in productivity, reduced employee turnover, and lower associated costs.
Mobile drug testing is even more efficient
Of course, testing for drugs in Atlanta is not straightforward. Managers have to deal with labs, scheduling, losing the time of their employees, and so on. Planning a testing program on your own will see the cost rise just as it would buying a car part by part. Mobile labs, however, cut down on those costs by combining the testing site and the lab into one location that can come onsite. This makes the drug testing procedure faster, easier, and cheaper. Mobile testing is more cost-efficient and time-efficient than traditional drug testing and performs even more tasks than an off-site lab. Where else can you get employee and supervisor education, the testing service at your door and at your call, plus help planning (which is less time the management spends on something other than the employees and profit, and it’s less time double-checking legal requirements)? Add on top of that a workplace where the employees know co-workers don’t have the opportunity to abuse drugs and endanger them, and you’ve also got a happier and more productive workplace.
Testing for drugs is no less important in Atlanta than any other city in America. No one thinks they need insurance until they have to use it. By using a mobile testing service, you’re making every employee in your workplace safer, but you’re also making the workplace more productive, saving money (in some cases even on workers’ compensation insurance and healthcare costs), and protecting the future of the business. Drug use is on the rise in “the A” and all of Georgia. The way to keep your workplace safe is trusting testing to the right mobile service provider.
