Identifying and Documenting SIGNS of Drug Impairment

"Feelings alert us to the existence of a problem, but facts protect employees against discrimination and employers against a law suit."

It is no secret that impaired employees are statistically less safe and less productive than non-impaired employees. Impaired employees may display abnormal movements and delayed reaction times, errors in judgment, and inappropriate or disruptive behaviors.

“Impairment” refers to a state of diminished function or ability.  Thus, “drug impairment” refers to a drug-induced state of diminished function or ability.

Most employees expect their fellow co-workers to show up to work free from impairment and perform their job safely and effectively. When an employee’s safety or productivity is compromised by drug and/or alcohol impairment, other staff notice. The staff who notice experience a gut feeling that tells them something is not right.

You’re likely to hear untrained staff describe abnormal behaviors as “bizarre” or “weird”, or reference the employee as “drunk”, or “high”. These inarticulate descriptors are not fact-based, they are feeling-based. Feelings do not warrant a referral for a drug screen on the basis of “reasonable suspicion”, facts do.

To establish “reasonable suspicion”, a supervisor must be able to identify, articulate, and document SIGNS that suggest employee impairment. They must “stick to the facts”.

For “reasonable suspicion” cases, I teach supervisors the acronym SIGNS. SIGNS stands for “See, Impairment, Gather facts, Never accuse, Screen.” To “See” is to engage one of the five primary senses: Sight. The other four include: Sound, Smell, Touch, and Taste. Supervisors should rely on Sight, Sound, and Smell only (the 3 S’s). They should avoid touch and never taste.

See the sample “Reasonable Suspicion Checklist” below. Each checkbox is a SIGN of impairment that is specific to a certain drug or classification of drugs, such as depressants or stimulants. Checklists help supervisors “stick to the facts” and articulate why they feel the way they do. I encourage you to download a free, modifiable copy of my checklist. It can be found on the right side of the articles home page under "Downloadable Documents".

*To learn more about the “Reasonable Suspicion” process from start to finish, SHRM offers a straight-forward 12-step process.

Because a supervisor is likely to be alerted to potential impairment first by sight, a supervisor should start here first. He/she should ask the question, “What am I seeing that makes me feel this person is possibly impaired?” A supervisor should then engage their Sound sense, asking the question, “What am I hearing that makes me feel this person is possibly impaired?” Finally, a supervisor should engage their Smell sense, asking the question, “What am I smelling that makes me feel this person is possibly impaired?” Now, if you happen to engage your Smell sense first, start there. The Sight, Sound, Smell order is just a rule of thumb.

Once a supervisor has engaged all three senses and documented the SIGNS accordingly, a decision should be made to refer or not refer the employee for a drug screen on the basis of “reasonable suspicion”.

Remember, this decision must be based on facts, not feelings. Feelings alert us to the existence of a problem, but facts protect employees against discrimination and employers against a law suit.

Ryan West