DON'T ASK, DON'T TELL

Companies, Fearing Loss Of Workers, Skip Drug Tests

In the war on drugs, Pueblo businessman Rick Patterson embraces the role of
foot soldier - no matter the sacrifice.

Recently, his Patterson Plumbing and Heating made the weighty decision to
suspend operations of its heating and air conditioning division, a unit
that generates $300,000 to $500,000 a year in business.

The reason: Four of five finalists for two technician openings failed the
company's pre-employment drug test. Two tested positive for marijuana, one
for crystal methamphetamine and one for cocaine, Patterson said.

"It's absolutely discouraging," Patterson said.

Still the company never thought about relenting, Patterson said.

In starting the testing eight years ago, "We wanted to ensure to not only
our customers but our employees that they would never have to be concerned
about their welfare or safety because somebody was not 100 percent mentally
there," Patterson said.

"We still feel very good about that. To step back now and say it doesn't
matter just raises the hair on the back of my neck. That is not a
possibility. We would sooner close the door to the business than do that."

Patterson may yet get the final say. Already, his brother and co-owner,
Jeff, like him a master plumber, is feverishly working his way through HVAC
courses at Pueblo Community College to bring stability to the division.

"Once we gain the expertise in-house then we can recruit inexperienced
young people with good ethics and train them in-house. That's what we do in
our plumbing department," Rick Patterson said.

In Pueblo and elsewhere in the U.S., drug testing remains voluntary in most
industries - and rare in some, particularly the construction and services
trades.

In construction work, drugs are so prevalent away from the job that few
employers risk the possible work-force shortage that would result, local
experts say.

"We have some companies that never sign up, especially in construction,
because they would not have anybody to work for them," said Noreen Ramey,
clinic manager for Centura Centers for Occupational Medicine.

Centura operates the city's largest drug-screening company with an
estimated 80 percent of market.

Businesses say they're in a no-win spot:

Since drug testing isn't mandatory, companies that require the screening
risk a shortage of workers. Meanwhile, the affected employees would simply
move onto another test-free company - and continue using drugs.

David Cortese, owner of Cortese Sheet Metal, which does not require drug
testing, said the reluctance to drug test isn't a decision based on morals
but rather economic survival.

Many companies, including his, would like to test, but almost all believe
that screening might weed out so many workers the company would end up
closing, Cortese said

Companies also would like a way to better control abuse of alcohol, a
bigger problem area than drugs, although legal, Cortese said.

"We have a lot of problems with alcohol," and none thus far with drugs,
Cortese said.

Short of a law mandating all companies begin making the move to drug
testing - a proposal he would consider supporting - Cortese said does not
see a change taking place.

"It's hard to get people in our industry anyway so it makes it pretty
tough," Cortese said.

Told of Patterson's predicament, Cortese voiced sympathy but also noted,
"He's lucky to get to five (applicants) because when I put ads in the paper
I'm lucky to get one or two."

Patterson said the problem goes beyond the reluctance of businesses to drug
test, a situation he weighed when he first made the decision to implement
the testing at his company.

The larger issue appears public acceptance of drugs, Patterson said. His
company's Web site maintains on online survey of the public on drug use in
the HVAC industry. "Fifty percent and more say they don't care," he said.

Even knowing the impact of drugs on society does not sway businesses.

Pueblo Police Chief Jim Billings recently described drug and alcohol
problems as "rampant" in Pueblo, and a chief factor in the majority of the
city's crimes, whether store holdups or domestic violence murders.

If given 20 additional police he would devote all of them to fighting
drugs, Billings said.

Today more companies than ever are drug testing.

Parkview Medical Center, one of a number of medical companies that perform
drug testing, reports about 70 client businesses are now enrolled in its
programs, an increase over several years ago, a Parkview spokesman said.

Centura also reports increased signups.

"We've had a pretty easy time," Centura's Ramey said.

Centura's local experiences suggests that reports of cosmetic signups -
companies signing up for drug testing but then choosing not to follow
through - are overblown, Ramey said.

In that instance current laws do help force the issue, Ramey said.

"If they (employers) go back and fudge and don't test someone, anyone in
that facility who was tested could go back and potentially sue them for
that. It can be called discrimination," Ramey said. The threat of a civil
lawsuit may in time also prompt more companies to begin a testing program.

Barry Nadell of Los Angeles, founder of InfoLink national criminal
background checks, said a company's decision not to test at all leaves the
business open for a liability lawsuit if a drug-related accident occurs on
the job.

"This concept of looking the other way and not doing background checks, I
don't think companies can possibly do that anymore," Nadell said, citing
the low cost of the tests.

A criminal background check costs less than $20, Nadell said.

A basic pre-employment drug test costs about $27, Ramey said. The Pueblo
Chieftain Online

Nationally, as much as 8 percent of the work force engages in illicit drug
use, led by the construction (15 percent) and automotive (8 percent)
trades, according to the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse.

Colorado ranked among the top states for usage, according to a 1999 survey.
Among workers aged 18 to 25, one in five Colorado workers (21 percent)
reported using drugs, primarily marijuana, the survey found.

Among workers aged 18 to 25, about 6 percent of Colorado workers reported
taking drugs, primarily marijuana, the survey found. Only three states,
Alaska (8.7%), Nevada (7.6%) and Massachusetts (6.4%), ranked higher.

The U.S. average for workers 26 and older was 3 percent.

Cocaine use, at a a fraction of marijuana use, ranks as the No. 2 most
common drug problem among U.S. workers, according to the annual Drug
Testing Index by Quest Diagnostics, the world's largest drug testing company.

Methamphetamine use trails but the numbers are rising.

Southern Colorado's drug-use rates are similar to the statewide average,
according to Centura and Profile EAP, a large employee assistance program
that operates in Pueblo, Canon City and Colorado Springs.

Drug testing alone will not cause the numbers to go lower, experts say.

Workers know how to cheat the system, Ramey said.

As with athletes, drug users experiment with masking substances or they
stay off drugs long enough for the residual chemicals to leave their
system, as few as two days for cocaine and 30 days for marijuana, she said.

"Check the Internet for 'pass a drug test,' " Ramey said.

"A million things come up on how to pass a drug test."

Knowing the reluctance of some businesses to test, Centura recently began
offering employers the option of a drug test that screens for drug use in
the past day or two, instead of the past month, Ramey said.

The test at least affords companies and their clients some level of
protection, Ramey said. "The employer may not care if you're a recreational
user as long as you're not stoned when you go to work right now," Ramey said.

For some businesses, such a compromise might prove inviting. For others,
such as Patterson, the option might seem the minimal step needed in a
battle that warrants bigger sacrifices.