Use of ice rife in high-risk workplaces as employers turn to testing

USE of the killer drug ice is surging in high-risk workplaces, where almost one in 10 employees is testing positive to illicit substances or alcohol.

The Drug Detection Agency runs training for its collectors and technicians who go out and test workers for drugs. (Front ) Glen Dittman managing Director of ADDA , training in back ground Craig Bartkowski .pic Jamie Hanson

USE of the killer drug ice is surging in high-risk workplaces, where almost one in 10 employees is testing positive to illicit substances or alcohol.

The destructive stimulant was detected in the majority of 2886 transport, construction and mining workers who tested positive to amphetamines in 2014.

The latest figures from testing firm The Drug Detection Agency show amphetamine use increased to 32 per cent of total positive returns, up from 21 per cent in 2013.

ICE: The violence-inducing drug destroying communities

The prevalence of ice has spurred employers to ramp up random and pre-employment testing.

Safety fears for workers and the public sharing roads with “wired’’ drivers are growing due to the boom drug’s potent effects, including a feeling of invincibility followed by sleep deprivation, blurred vision and hallucinations.

Frequent use can cause “ice psychosis”, a condition that’s characterised by paranoid delusions and aggressive or violent behaviour.

TDDA, which has 36 branches, conducted 100,000 urine and oral fluid tests in “safety sensitive” sites in 2014. It is on track to complete more than 120,000 this year.

CEO Kirk Hardy told The Sunday Mail that just over 9 per cent of workers returned a positive result, some showing they had consumed a dangerous cocktail of drugs.

Mr Hardy said that of the positive returns, cannabis remained the most frequent, representing 56.7 per cent, followed by 32 per cent amphetamine (the majority involving ice) and 29 per cent opiates (codeine/morphine).

Almost 17 per cent of positive tests showed Benzodiazepines, which are also used as “downers” to level out users after binges on crystal meth.

“There has been a big spike in workplace drug testing as more employers know they have to take it seriously,” Mr Hardy said. “This is a huge issue.”

Mr Hardy said there had been an alarming increase in ice detections.

He said the drug promoted risk-taking behaviour and users could suffer serious impairment, including “rebound fatigue” leading to dangerous errors.

“We have people on ice behind the wheel of big rigs, and there are families driving in the opposite direction so, unfortunately, there’s a big safety issue,” Mr Hardy said.

Employees who test positive to illicit substances or alcohol can be immediately stood down and face disciplinary action from their employer.

Depending on their company’s policy, workers can be diverted to counselling and rehabilitation or dismissed. Police are not notified as it is a workplace health and safety matter.

Rehab providers have labelled meth use a “national emergency” affecting all walks of life and costing people their jobs, families and lives.

“It is on every street corner in every city,” said Francis McLachlan, owner of The Health Retreat at Maleny. “People tell us they order a pizza then call their drug dealer and the ice arrives before the pizza.

“It’s cheaper to get crystal meth than to go to a nightclub and get drunk.”

Mr McLachlan says everyone from doctors to miners and salesmen seek help for drug and alcohol addiction at The Health Retreat.

“We get people coming to us who have been suspended or sacked or are worried they are going to fall foul of heavy machinery as part of their work.

“The only way to get the job back is clear blood.

“This is not just affecting one socio-economic or age group. We have 14-year-olds right through to 65-year-old retired businessmen.”

Mr McLachlan said people were turning to the drugs because they didn’t know how to deal with underlying mental health problems.

“The real issue is depression and anxiety and an inability to cope with life. Those are the underlying causes. They haven’t learned how to cope with stress,” he said.

Research by the National Centre for Education and Training on Addiction at Flinders University has identified workforce groups with a higher prevalence of ice use.

It found workplaces at elevated risk were those where young males aged 18 to 30 were employed as tradespeople or technicians and there were high levels of work stress, long hours and shift work.

NCETA said workplace drug testing was effective if combined with a comprehensive policy approach that incorporated additional strategies such as education and training.

“Miners and FIFOs are using synthetic cannabis so they can pass a drug test because an employer is not testing for it or the tests can’t pick up the chemicals,” said test-kit supplier Gavin Holland, from Royal Medical Supplies.

“I had one employer contact me after one of their staff passed a drug test and then collapsed on site and he had used synthetic cannabis.”

Synthetic cannabis, which is ordinary herbs laced with man-made chemicals, is blamed for two deaths in Mackay this year and numerous hospital admissions.

Mr Holland said drug producers kept changing the chemicals they used to remain one step ahead of detection.