Random Testing Misses Point

Plans to subject rail workers to random drug and alcohol tests would be ineffective and could waste hundreds of thousands of dollars better spent countering fatigue, according to NSW unions.

Major concerns have been raised about the proposal, which has been labelled a "knee jerk reaction" to major rail safety incidents that have had nothing to do with the use of drugs.

The unions say it is crucial rail employees are fit while at work, particularly where public safety is an issue, but say the government's plan fails to address the real safety issues.

Rail, Tram and Bus Industry Union branch secretary Nick Lewocki says US studies have found that while 5% of all car accidents are drug or alcohol related, it is fatigue which is responsible for at least 20% in incidents. Meanwhile, he says that fatigue related industrial accidents cost the US about $100 billion per year.

Other problems with random testing for drugs and alcohol include expense, ineffectiveness, and the possibility of improper or malicious use by employers.

"The cost of random testing is enormous," Mr Lewocki says. "The average cost of a test is around $500 per employee, so a thousand employees are $500,00. There are no identifiable benefits," he says.

Dr Judith Perl from NSW Police says experience in the police force has shown it is far more effective to test when people are showing signs of impairment and says alcohol should be ruled out before testing for other substances.

She says police in NSW that use this system when testing drivers experience a 95% success rate in samples testing positive for potentially impairing substances.

But if serious about dealing with impairment issues, fatigue must be targeted as a top priority, NSW unions are saying.

Rail unions are joining the NSW Labor Council in calling for a new method of ensuring employees in high risk industries are not made to work when their fatigue levels are over the safe limit.

The method, called an FAID score, has been developed by the South Australia Sleep Research Centre as a tool for developing rosters that allow for adequate hours of rest. Employees who finish shifts with fatigue levels equivalent (in terms of impairment) to 0.05 on the alcohol scale can be contrasted with the 0.02 level of alcohol-induced impairment permitted under drug and alcohol testing provisions.

The rail unions say mastering methods like the FAID to mitigate fatigue issues or limiting testing to the targeted methods used by the police force is where money earmarked to fund random testing should be spent.

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Last modified: Tuesday, 15-Nov-2005 20:37:37 EST