The Department of Labor and Employment Department Order 53-03 requires private employers to have not only mandatory drug testing but also policies and programs on drug use including advocacy, education, training, treatment, rehabilitation, referral, monitoring and evaluation. The Civil Service Commission has amended its earlier ruling of immediate dismissal and now requires drug dependency assessment followed by either outpatient counseling or inpatient rehabilitation. Despite these policies, stories abound of summary dismissals for those who test positive without any attempt at rehabilitation. This begs the question, if we push people away from their sources of support and livelihood, will this really help them change? Or will it not just increase the likelihood of a downward spiral that may ruin not just their lives but that of others?
Although we need to acknowledge that there is a link between drug use and crime, we also need to disabuse ourselves of the notion that all users=addicts=criminals. The Dangerous Drug Board (2016) reported that only 10% of users actually need rehabilitation and 90% are low to mild-risk users who can be treated in the community or workplace.
Speaking with employers, we realized that one reason for the punitive approach was because most employers don’t know that they could help their employees or didn’t know what they could do. To respond to this, Ateneo CORD adapted a community-based drug recovery treatment created by the Psychological Association of the Philippines (Katatagan Kontra Droga sa Komunidad). We conducted a needs analysis with employers and found that employees who use drugs were reported to be low risk users. HR practitioners also suggested that it was, in fact, alcohol abuse that was more prevalent and problematic. Given this, we created a substance use (to include drugs, alcohol and cigarettes) prevention program called Healthy Me, Healthy We. Consisting of six, 1.5 hour modules, it focuses on building understanding of the effects of substances, developing skills for resistance and choosing healthier lifestyles. We manualized and trained HR professionals who piloted the program and although our results are preliminary, they are encouraging. There is a reported increase in drug refusal skills and motivation to change, and a decrease in substance use. More importantly, employees shared an increased awareness of what they can lose because of substance use and an appreciation for their company that cared about their welfare.
The carrot or the stick perspective has been applied to many work behaviors. We provide incentives for productive behaviors and punishment for counter-productive behaviors. However, neither carrot nor stick are adequate in shaping health behaviors. Drug use is a learned behavior that can be unlearned. Rather than using a stick, what people really need to recover from drug use is a helping hand to teach them how.
For more information about Ateneo CORD’s Healthy Me, Healthy We workshop on August 1-3, 2018 please email [email protected] or visit http://www.ateneo.edu/cord/course/healthy-me-health-we-workplace-wellness-intervention