Workplace Policies

Summary

Workplace policies and programs prevent and reduce problems among employees have considerable potential. Because employees spend a lot of time at work, coworkers and supervisors may have the opportunity to notice a developing drug use, gambling or mental health issue. Employers can use their influence to motivate employees to get help for these problems. Many employers offer employee assistance programs (EAPs) as well as educational programs to reduce these problems.

Core Components

Dosage/Frequency

At least 50% of a specific business sector should be engaged in the strategy with at least 50% of that sector implementing policy change by the end of the project period.

Required Key Steps

All policies developed or strengthened through this strategy must be formally written, signed by the business leadership and then provided to the Agency as documentation. Contact the Agency Project Director/Coordinator for additional grant requirements about this documentation.

In collaboration with the coalition and community partners, discuss the following:

• Identify specific sectors of business that may be at an elevated risk of having employees with the priority issue.
• Connect with businesses in the identified sector to learn if there is a policy in place, if assistance is needed in strengthening or developing a policy.
• Engage a team within the business to develop the policy and oversee implementation.
• Assess the workplace to determine what kind of policy is appropriate.
• Develop a policy for the workplace program.
  • Utilize the 8 P’s for policy change efforts.
  • Most successful drug-free workplace programs have five key components:
    • A written policy (see additional details in “Written Policies” section below);
    • Employee education;
    • Supervisor training (Professionals must utilize the Iowa Creating a Drug-Free Workplace Kit and training modules for supervisory training. Please reference the Workplace Employee and Supervisor Training strategy for additional information);
    • An employee assistance program (EAP);
    • Drug testing (if focusing on a drug-free workplace policy).
• Support the workplace in planning and implementing the workplace program.
• Assist the workplace in evaluating the program to assess how well it meets its objectives.
• Connect the workplace with supports to provide education and training for employees.

Drug Policies

A clearly written policy forms the foundation of the drug-free workplace program. At minimum, the policy should include:

• Purpose and objectives of the program
• Rationale for the policy, such as organizational goals and compliance with laws or regulations
• Definition of substance use
• Which employees are covered by the policy or program
• When and where the policy applies
• Prohibited behaviors
• Employee rights to confidentiality
• Under what circumstances will drug or alcohol testing be conducted
• Outline of how to deal with impaired workers
• Provisions for assisting chronic use of substances
• The consequences of violating the policy, including disciplinary action
• Assistance options to support employees in following the policy
• Educational opportunities for employees about substance misuse.
• Employee and supervisor training to recognize impaired behavior and other signs of substance use.

Problem Gambling Policies

A clearly written policy forms the foundation of any workplace program. At minimum, the policy should include:

• Purpose and objectives of the program.
• Rationale for the policy, such as organizational goals and compliance with laws or regulations.
• Definition of problem gambling.
• Which employees are covered by the policy or program.
• When and where the policy applies.
• Prohibited behaviors
• Employee rights to confidentiality.
• Assistance options to support employees in following the policy.
• Educational opportunities for employees about problem gambling.
• Employee and supervisor training to recognize signs of problem gambling behaviors.
• Outline of how to address work related concerns directly related to gambling behaviors during work hours.
• Provisions for assisting staff who may experience negative impacts due to gambling; and
• The consequences of violating the policy, including disciplinary action.

Suicide Prevention Policies

• The key components of a comprehensive workplace approach include:
  • Policies and procedures to help employees at risk and in crisis;
  • A plan for responding to a suicide attempt or death in the workplace;
  • Mental health emergency contact information placed throughout the workplace;
  • Education and training on mental health, suicide prevention, and stigma reduction for employees;
  • Specialized suicide prevention training for the workplace’s EAP providers and/or HR staff;
  • Established relationships with mental health professionals in the local community;
  • A referral guide to resources in the community that offer support and/or treatment for problems related to suicide; and
  • A work environment that values its employees and promotes respect, open communication, a sense of belonging, and emotional wellbeing and that encourages people to seek help when they need it and to support each other.

Capacity Building

• Create a capacity building plan to continually engage strategy stakeholders. Some ideas include:
  • Build support for this strategy through regular face-to-face visits with the business team to enhance leadership engagement as well as to develop or strengthen policies.
    • Consider utilizing the Workplace Wellness Policy Checklist (page 15) as guide to ensure policy capacity.
    • Discuss assessing the workplace environment to determine direction.
    • Consider ways to engage employees in the policy development process.
    • Discuss creation and implementation of educational sessions to all business employees about the policy priorities, changes and/or services (e.g., lunch and learns, continuing education sessions, etc.).
  • Once a policy has passed:
  • Discuss process of ongoing monitoring of use and enforcement of the policy including review of evaluation results (e.g., determine indicators, creation and dissemination of participation or satisfaction surveys).
  • Continue to educate employees through newsletters, meetings, or other venues, about the policies, available services, etc.

Implementation Resources

An Employers Guide to Policy Approaches to Address Alcohol, Drugs, Tobacco, Mental Health, Suicide and Chronic Disease
Model Plan for Comprehensive Drug-Free Workplace
Sharing Solutions | U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation
SAMHSA’s Drug-Free Workplace Toolkit
SAMHSA Fact Sheets on Preventing Prescription Abuse in the Workplace
Workplace Prevention Basics: An Interactive Guide for Employers to Identify and Prevention