The District Drug Free Workplace Program was developed in response to federal requirements for the testing of all transportation employees. See Reference (i). The Board of Education decided to apply the Drug-Free Workplace Program not just to transportation employees, but to all employees performing driving or safety-sensitive functions (including police officers who carry firearms, motor vehicle mechanics and inspectors, transportation aides, operators of hazardous equipment, custodial staff, and Food Services employees).

 

The District has approximately 1,100 employees with a commercial drivers license who are directly covered under the Federal DOT regulations. In addition, the District has approximately 3,200 employees who are in positions that are classified as safety-sensitive. The federal government does not require testing of these employees under DOT regulations; however, the District has chosen to apply the same standards to both classes of employees. The HISD Drug-Free Workplace staff members work closely with the District’s third party drug and alcohol testing provider to administer a program that not only meets the requirements of the federal Department of Transportation, but also the more rigorous requirements set forth and established by the HISD Board. The District conducts the following types of employee drug and alcohol testing through a contracted third party provider:

 

 

Drug and alcohol training is also required for all supervisors who have the authority to order reasonable suspicion tests on any District employee. Recurrent training for supervisory personnel is not a federal requirement, however, it is required by HISD every four years.