249.10 The appointing authority for each college shall designate an office to be responsible for development of a drug-free awareness program to educate employees and students about the dangers of drug and alcohol abuse. Such programs shall include informational materials, the specifics of Seattle College District’s policy, and a plan for dissemination of information about the program.

249.20 Employees in public safety positions or those required to have a Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) are subject to pre-employment, post-accident, random and reasonable suspicion testing in accordance with appropriate federal and state statutes.

249.30 Seattle College District reserves the right to conduct testing on employees under appropriate circumstances. All testing will be conducted according to Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) guidelines where applicable and drug-testing information will be maintained in separate confidential records. The cost of testing will be paid for by the District.

  1. Post-accident drug and alcohol testing may be conducted by Seattle Community College District for any employee when a work-related incident has occurred involving death, serious bodily injury or significant property/environmental damage, or the potential for death, serious bodily injury, or significant property/environmental damage, and when the employee’s action(s) or inaction(s) either contributed to the incident or cannot be completely discounted as a contributing factor. Testing will be done by an independent outside testing laboratory selected by the college/district.
  2. Reasonable suspicion testing for alcohol or controlled substance may be directed by the college/district for any employee when there is reason to suspect that alcohol or controlled substance usage may be adversely affecting performance or may present a danger to the physical safety of the employee or another.
    1. Reasonable suspicion testing does not have to be preceded by a safety or disciplinary incident. However, specific objective grounds must be stated in writing that support the reasonable suspicion. Examples of specific objective grounds include but are not limited to:
      1. Physical symptoms consistent with controlled substance and/or alcohol use;
      2. Evidence or observation of controlled substance or alcohol use, possession, sale or deliver; or
      3. The occurrence of an accident(s) where a trained manager or supervisor suspects controlled substance/alcohol usage may have been a factor.
  3. When an employee is referred for testing, he or she will be removed immediately from duty and transported to the collection testing site by a supervisor. In the case of any incident such as described in 249.30(a), the employee must make himself or herself available for transport immediately. If the employee has been referred to immediate medical care, the testing will be conducted as soon as is physically safe for the employee.
  4. An employee who has a positive alcohol test and/or a positive controlled substance test may be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal.
  5. To the extent that there is a conflict between this policy and procedure and any current collective bargaining agreement, the provisions of the collective bargaining agreement will take precedence.

249.40 Employees and students are required to report any conviction under a criminal drug statute for violations occurring in or on properties controlled and/or owned by Seattle College District VI, or while conducting college business.

  1. Employees are to report such conviction to the Human Resources Department within five (5) days after said conviction. Students are to report such conviction to the Office of the Vice President of Student Services within five (5) days after the conviction.
  2. Seattle College District shall determine whether or not the reported conviction of an individual is in any way a part of a federally funded or contracted program. Notification of conviction shall be made to an appropriate federal contracting agency within ten (10) days of having received notice that an employee engaging in the performance of such federally sponsored grant or contract has any conviction of a drug violation occurring in the workplace.

Companion Document : Pol
Adoption Date : 1987/10/06
Revision Date : 2015/09/14