GO SLOW ON DRUG TESTING

After the conviction of two Madison firefighters on misdemeanor drug
charges, Fire Chief Debra Amesqua and other city officials say they will
make demands for random drug testing a priority in upcoming contract
negotiations with unions representing police officers and firefighters.

Managers will use any excuse to get an upper hand in bargaining, but this
one is weak. The bosses seem to have forgotten that one of the convicted
men actually passed a drug test conducted when he learned he was under
investigation.

If the Madison Police and Fire departments are so poorly managed that
bosses do not know whether employees have drug problems, then city
officials have much more serious issues to address than who is urinating in
which cup.

Union officials have shown genuine flexibility on issues of controlling
substance abuse problems, indicating that they are more than willing to
work with management to develop effective methods to identify employees who
may have developed drug or alcohol problems.

But the unions are right to resist the knee-jerk reactions of top-level
bureaucrats who are more interested in scoring negotiating points than in
finding better ways to protect and serve the people of Madison.