ALBERTA CONTEMPLATING RANDOM DRUG TESTING

EDMONTON - Alberta needs legislation to allow random drug testing because an
increasing number of workers are impaired on the job, Labour Minister Clint
Dunford said yesterday.

Mr. Dunford said he would like to see the province adopt mandatory drug
testing in the workplace within five years. "I know it's going to be hugely
controversial, but at some point, we've got to deal with impairment in the
workplace," he said.

The head of Alberta's largest union immediately rejected Mr. Dunford's call
for random testing. "We see the need for drug testing where there's
problems, but no random drug testing," said Dan MacLennan, president of the
Alberta Union of Provincial Employees.