• A company can test employees after an accident when there is reason to believe drugs or alcohol contributed to the incident.
• State and federal laws should be considered when a post-accident test is conducted.
• An employer should test all employees whose actions may have contributed to a workplace accident or incident.

Post-accident drug or alcohol testing can help determine whether drug or alcohol use contributed to the cause of an accident or incident. The worker may have been driving erratically or working in an unsafe manner directly before the incident, leading to the suspicion that drug or alcohol use was a contributing factor. Perhaps the severity of the incident leads to the suspicion that the employee was impaired. A state or federal law may require a post-accident test in certain situations.

Requirements and restrictions for post-accident testing

Some federal and state regulations require employers to conduct a post-accident drug test:

• The Department of Transportation (DOT) requires post-accident tests to be conducted when a regulated driver is involved in an accident that meets the testing requirements. Tests required by the DOT must be conducted according to those regulations.
• Some states have workers’ compensation discount laws that give employers a discount on workers’ compensation insurance when an employer opts to comply with the requirements of the voluntary law. Some of these laws require drug testing. Those laws must be followed when they apply.
• A state law may restrict post-accident testing. Minnesota, for example, allows testing when there is reasonable suspicion of drug use but does not allow employers to conduct a drug test simply because there has been a workplace accident. (This restriction would not apply if the test is required under federal law.)

Before testing, make sure to be familiar with any state or federal laws that could apply to the situation.

Who to test after an accident

An employer should test all employees whose conduct may have had a role in a workplace accident or incident, not only the employees who reported injuries.

If a bystander’s actions could have contributed to an accident, the bystander should be tested as well.

Should drug and alcohol testing be conducted after every accident?

In addition to state and federal laws, the nature of the accident should be taken into consideration before a test is conducted. If it is possible that drug or alcohol use contributed to a workplace accident, a post-accident or reasonable suspicion drug test is typically justified. However, rather than having a blanket policy requiring testing after all accidents or incidents, it is a good idea to consider the situation.

A drug or alcohol test should be avoided when there is no possibility that alcohol or drug use was a contributing factor. For example, if a ceiling tile breaks loose and falls on an employee, it would be very hard to justify giving the employee a drug or alcohol test. There is no reason to suspect that alcohol or drug use contributed to that accident. This type of situation shows why it could be risky to have a blanket drug testing policy.

Who should be tested after an accident?

An employer should test all employees whose conduct may have had a role in a workplace accident or incident, not only employees who reported injuries or who were directly involved.

If a bystander’s actions could have contributed to an accident, the bystander should be tested as well.