DRUG TESTS FOR TTC STAFF?

Commission Considers Controversial Practice Following Worker's Death But
Transit Union Calls It A Human Rights Violation

The Toronto Transit Commission is considering a highly controversial
move to require drug and alcohol testing of employees, following the
death of a subway worker in April 2007.

The idea, slated to be considered by the commission during a June 18
safety discussion, is likely to be fiercely opposed by the TTC unions.

"That's an infringement on my human rights," union head Bob Kinnear
responded yesterday, adding that TTC workers would undergo drug tests
"as soon as Prime Minister Stephen Harper or Premier Dalton McGuinty
do it."

The proposal came to light a day after a TTC bus operator was charged
with impaired driving.

But it was last year's fatal accident that killed maintenance worker
Antonio Almeida, 38, that has prompted the transit commission to
consider drug testing, the Star has learned.

The married father of two had drugs in his system when he died in the
accident, which also seriously injured two others in the 11-member
asbestos removal crew, said sources close to the investigation.

Almeida was crushed while driving a work car at the end of his night
shift. The accident occurred when a piece of equipment snagged on a
tunnel wall.

The Ontario Coroner's Office is to decide by end of the month whether
there will be an inquest.

There's no evidence Almeida was responsible for the tragedy, according
to the sources. He was, however, one of three TTC employees caught
together using cannabis during working hours in the year before he
died, a source said. The drug use took place in a car off TTC property.

All three employees were initially fired following the incident, but
the company reinstated Almeida and another worker, said a source.

Almeida's widow, however, denied her husband was fired for the
incident in the car. He was suspended for two weeks while the company
investigated, said Sonya Almeida last night.

"If he had smoked he would have been fired," she said, adding that it
was within a couple of months of that incident that the TTC gave her
husband an award of excellence.

She said her husband was not smoking drugs the day before his final
shift. "I know for a fact he didn't smoke on the Sunday," she said.

The issue of drug and alcohol testing is being raised within a broader
discussion of public and employee safety and how to determine whether
employees are fit for duty, said TTC chair Adam Giambrone, who would
not confirm the reported drug use.

"You expect people to be able to come to work and do their job safely.
The question will come up - `Will that include drug and alcohol
testing?' We're evaluating that. How do you deal with fatigue, which
is a very serious situation when it comes to driving? We have to
figure that out," he said. "The drug testing, if you were going to do
that, isn't necessarily the be-all and end-all."

Last month, the TTC was fined $200,000 after it pleaded guilty to
failing to take every reasonable precaution to protect Almeida and
other workers. It also was ordered to pay $50,000 to a fund for
victims of crime. Although drug testing by transit authorities is
common in the U.S., Giambrone said he's aware of only one in Canada
that does it: Windsor. Buses there cross into Detroit and the testing
is mandatory to comply with U.S. regulations.

There is no drug test that would prevent the kind of "isolated
incident" that occurred on a TTC bus this week, Kinnear argued.

On Tuesday, passengers on a TTC bus in the west end of the city called
police to report they suspected their driver was drunk.

Satvinder Bisla, 48, was charged with one count of driving over the
legal limit.

"His employment will be terminated," TTC spokesperson Brad Ross said
yesterday. "We can't have our operators driving our vehicles
intoxicated. It goes against everything we're about with respect to
public safety. It's a pretty basic standard of expectation that we
have and that the public has."

Kinnear said that his union deals with about half a dozen cases a year
of alcohol or drugs on the job among its 9,000 members.

But checks are built into the system: Operators must check in with
supervisors and clerks to collect fare boxes before their shifts. If
there's a suspicion they're impaired, they are not allowed behind the
wheel, Giambrone said.

"Nothing is absolute," he said. "In all these situations you need to
assure yourself you've got a good system in place that deals with
almost all circumstances. Even under drug and alcohol testing there's
mistakes." With thousands of employees, "you just couldn't test
everyone every day even if you wanted to."

The safety of the 1.5 million people who ride the TTC every day is
paramount, he said. But measures to ensure safety must also be
balanced with legal considerations, privacy issues and respect for
employees.

Drug testing generally is considered discriminatory under the Canadian
Human Rights Commission guidelines for employers, said Karen Izzard, a
senior policy adviser.

"A positive drug test doesn't tell you when drugs were taken, how much
was taken. It can't be linked necessarily to impairment on the job."

Human rights case law does support testing in "safety-critical"
occupations such as trucking, particularly where it involves crossing
the border, or transit, she said.

But the practice, criticized for its potential to violate personal
privacy, is widely rejected by workers.