SUBSTANCE TESTING

All substance testing (drug and alcohol) conducted by the Agency shall be done in accordance with applicable laws, DOT Order 3910.1, the DOT Drug and Alcohol Testing Guide, and this Agreement.

The Principal Facility Representative, or his/her designee, shall be notified of the arrival at the facility of the collector/Breath Alcohol Technician (BAT) for the purposes of conducting substance testing of bargaining unit employees. The Agency shall advise the Principal Facility Representative, or his/her designee, of both the maximum number of employees to be tested and the time parameter of the testing period. Absent an emergency or other special circumstance, the Principal Facility Representative, or his/her designee, shall be released on official time for the purpose of performing representational duties. The Principal Facility Representative, or his/her designee, will be notified when substance testing has been completed. Upon request, the Agency will inform the representative of the number of people tested at the facility. When the annotated test list is requested prior to the conclusion of testing, it shall be provided to the Union on site immediately upon the completion of testing. When the annotated test list is requested after the completion of testing, the Agency will provide a copy to the Union as soon as the information becomes available, but normally no later than ten (10) days after the request was made.

An employee who wishes to have a Union representative present during the testing process shall be permitted to do so, provided a representative is readily available, and the collection/test is not delayed. The employee shall notify the supervisor of his/her wish to obtain representation as soon as the employee learns that he/she is to be tested. The representative will be permitted to observe the actions of the collector/BAT, but will not interrupt or interfere with the collection process in any manner. The employee will be allowed to confer for a reasonable period of time not to exceed ten (10) minutes prior to and ten (10) minutes immediately after the sample collection process has been completed.

The Union at the national level shall be given a copy of the Agency’s quarterly substance abuse statistical report and a copy of the results of the testing of quality control specimens provided to the testing laboratory by the Department of Transportation. In addition, one (1) Union representative shall be permitted to accompany officials of the Agency on an inspection of the testing laboratory once a year, if the Agency conducts such an inspection.

Employees will be given notice privately where and when to appear for substance testing.

The Agency recognizes its obligations under the Privacy Act with respect to information about bargaining unit employees and their connection to substance testing, including non-disclosure by collectors/contractors.

The Agency shall ensure that employees are selected for substance testing by nondiscriminatory and impartial methods so that no employee is harassed by being treated differently from other employees in similar circumstances. If for any reason a substance test is declared invalid, the test will be treated as if it had never been conducted. Employees shall not be selected for testing for reasons unrelated to the purposes of the program.

All equipment used for alcohol testing shall meet the requirements and standards as specified in DOT Order 3910.1 and the DOT Drug and Alcohol Testing Guide. Upon written request, the Union shall be given a copy of the results of calibration checks for equipment used for alcohol testing. The request must include the specific site locations(s) (with acronym(s) spelled out) and the specific date(s) that testing occurred. If any testing equipment is found to be out of tolerance/calibration as specified in DOT Order 3910.1, every test result of 0.02 or above obtained on the device since the last valid external calibration check shall be invalid.

The Agency shall ensure that the HHS Mandatory Guidelines regarding proper storage, handling, and refrigeration of urine samples prior to testing are followed.

Testing will be conducted in a secure, sanitary area, and the privacy and dignity of the employee will be respected.

Employees will be notified of drug test results within a reasonable period of time, normally five (5) working days of receipt of the results by the Drug Program Coordinator (DPC). Failure to comply with this timeframe will not invalidate the results. Alcohol test results shall be made available to the employee at the time of testing. Notification of test results shall be handled in a confidential manner. Such results shall only be disclosed as provided for in DOT Order 3910.1 and this Agreement.

In the event of a negative dilute, employees shall be provided with the laboratory results prior to being subjected to re-collection. Re- collection due to a negative dilute shall be done in accordance with DOT Order 3910.1.

Only employees who are in a duty status shall be subject to substance testing.

Post accident/incident testing shall only be conducted on employees whose work performance at or about the time of the covered event, as described in DOT Order 3910.1 and the DOT Drug and Alcohol Testing Guide, provides reason to believe that such performance may have contributed to the accident or incident, or cannot be completely discounted as a contributing factor to the accident or incident. If an employee is held past his/her shift end time, he/she will be paid overtime in accordance with this Agreement.

In extenuating circumstances (for example, child care arrangements), an employee identified for post-accident testing may request approval to leave the facility if the collector/BAT has not arrived at the facility or will not be arriving shortly. The employee will be required to sign a statement that he/she will not consume alcohol for up to eight (8) hours of the time of the covered event and that he/she must return to the facility for testing when called back.

When reasonable suspicion exists that an employee has violated the substance prohibitions contained in DOT Order 3910.1 and the DOT Drug and Alcohol Testing Guide, the Agency may require that employee submit to substance testing. Reasonable suspicion must be based on specific, objective facts and reasonable inferences drawn from these facts in the light of experience. Reasonable suspicion does not require certainty, but mere “hunches” are not sufficient to meet this standard. At the time an employee is ordered to submit to substance testing based on a reasonable suspicion, he/she will be given a written statement setting out the basis for establishing reasonable suspicion. In the event that a reasonable suspicion test produces a negative result, any references to reasonable suspicion including, but not limited to, the written statements, shall be expunged from all formal and informal files. This does not preclude the maintenance of those records required by DOT regulations.

In accordance with DOT Order 3910.1 and the DOT Drug and Alcohol Testing Guide, each urine specimen shall be split into two (2) specimen bottles using the split specimen procedure. If the Medical Review Officer (MRO) verifies the primary specimen bottle (bottle A) is positive, substituted, and/or adulterated, the donor may request through the MRO that the split specimen bottle (bottle B) be tested in another HHS- certified laboratory, under contract with DOT, for the presence of drugs for which a positive result was obtained in the test of bottle A. Only the donor can make such request. Such request shall be honored if made within seventy-two (72) hours of the donor having received notice that his/her primary specimen tested positive and was verified.

If an employee fails to provide an appropriate amount of urine in accordance with DOT Order 3910.1, the employee will be given a reasonable period of time to provide a specimen. The employee will be allowed an appropriate amount of time in accordance with DOT Order 3910.1. The inability of an employee to provide an amount of breath sufficient for alcohol testing purposes shall be handled in accordance with DOT Order 3910.1.

Every reasonable effort shall be made to accommodate employee requests for annual or sick leave immediately upon completion of a drug test in order to allow the employee to secure back-up testing in a timely manner. Individuals who are granted such leave may be required, upon request, to provide proof that back-up testing was accomplished. Employees are not required to provide the results of such tests.

In the event of a confirmed positive alcohol test of .02 or higher, the Agency shall, upon written request, provide to the employee and the Union the maintenance and calibration history of the equipment used and the BAT’s last certification.

Employees who have not been identified for drug/alcohol testing may be granted leave. After an employee has been tested, he/she may be granted leave.

Employees who are requesting leave and have been identified for testing shall be tested in the following order:

a. Employees experiencing an emergency situation, whose leave has been denied as a result of being identified for testing, shall be tested as soon as possible once the employee notifies the Agency of the emergency situation so their leave can be granted as soon as they provide a specimen. When an employee must leave without first providing a specimen, documentation must be provided to substantiate the emergency as soon as feasible after returning to duty.

b. Employees on duty who have pre-approved leave shall be tested in time to accommodate their leave request.

c. When requests for other leave would be approved if not for testing being conducted, the supervisor shall coordinate with the Site Coordinator (SC) so that the employee can be tested in the order that will allow him/her to take leave, provided it will not cause any other employees identified for testing to stay beyond the end of his/her scheduled work day in order to be tested.

There shall be no local or regional supplements to this Article.

Nothing in this Article shall be construed as a waiver of any employee, Union, or Agency right.