Friday, November 6, 2015
Hair-Raising Drug Tests
No, those aren't monsters descending on Washington. They're truck industry lobbyists peddling a hocus pocus method for drug testing bus and truck drivers: hair specimen testing. The problem? Because hair is porous, it absorbs substances that people come into contact with through the environment. Labs performing hair tests are currently incapable of distinguishing between drugs that drivers are exposed to and those which they actually ingested. In other words, a Ouija Board might be better at determining test results, since the scientists say this kind of testing isn't reliable to declare a positive test. If this isn't frightening enough, there's also a racial bias to this method of testing because some drugs bond at greater rates to hair that is darker and more porous.
Transportation Workers Can't be Up All Night like Ghosts
Is that a zombie or a fatigued worker over there? Hmmm, take a closer look. Workforce fatigue is plaguing America's transportation employees, including bus and truck drivers, rail and aviation employees, TSOs and more. Low wages, frightening policies and grueling employer demands routinely force these working people to choose between proper rest and a paycheck.
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