COSAFE PUSHES DRUG TESTING FOR ALL BUSINESSES

Ninety percent of El Paso businesses do not have a drug free policy,
but that's about to change.

Or so hopes a nonprofit anti drug organization that is waging a
campaign to increase the number of local companies that conduct drug
testing before hiring, randomly run drug tests during employment and
provide drug prevention education and counseling. Bobby D. Lewis,
executive director of the Consortium on a Substance Abuse Free
Environment - a group that works to coordinate efforts to prevent drug
use and rehabilitate users - said he wants to double the number of
companies that have drug free policies by the end of the calendar year.

"By having a policy they can save a whole lot of money," Lewis said on
Wednesday right before COSAFE's monthly meeting. "We'll do the
consultation free of cost. We might ask for a donation, but if they
don't have any money or they don't want to give us any, we'll still do
it."

Lewis said nationwide most large companies now do have a drug free
policy. In El Paso that also holds true, but he estimated about 90
percent of the businesses don't have such a policy. He said most
businesses think having such a policy in place is way more complicated
and expensive than it really is. "Part of it is a lack of
information," Lewis said. "They don't know how easy it is to put in
these programs. It won't cost you a whole lot of money, and there
won't be as much employee turnover, which means it will save money."

COSAFE, which has about 40 agencies as members, will start with the El
Paso Greater Chamber of Commerce members, offering to act as
consultants to members in developing a drug free policy. From there
COSAFE plans to reach the rest of the El Paso businesses. Mark Dore,
an El Paso labor lawyer, said federal and state laws codified in the
1980s and 1990s allow businesses to test employees for drugs and in
fact to fire employees for using drugs.

"Denial of employment for drug use is acceptable," he said. "If you're
being rehabilitated you might be protected, but if you are a current
user, you're fair game."

However businesses should be careful how they craft drug free
policies. Sometimes a test will falsely come up positive, meaning a
confirming test should be mandated, Dore said. He also said some drugs
can stay in the body for a long time after use, meaning someone could
use drugs on a weekend and test positive for it during the week.

The use of illegal drugs anytime could result in disciplinary action
even if those drugs were used during nonworking hours, but alcohol is
legal, and many companies do not test for it at all because a person
could test positive for it on a Monday when the last time they had a
drink was Sunday when they were not working. "You have to craft your
policy right," Dore said.

COSAFE has other plans for 1999, including expanding its overall
membership 300 percent. It wants to expand its membership to a wider
variety of the community, adding at least 150 agency members.

"You need to be part of the solution," said David Monnette, spokesman
for the Drug Enforcement Administration, and a member of the COSAFE
board of directors. "Or you're definitely part of the problem."

COSAFE has been operating for the past five years on no budget
whatsoever. But this year it is applying for grants, including
$150,000 from the Texas Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse. It will
also seek donations this year.

"Everything we've done so far has been without any money," Lewis said.
"Imagine what we could do with a budget."

Right now COSAFE runs programs in six West Texas counties, but it
wants to expand into New Mexico where interest in joining the
organization has been expressed.