Pubdate: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 Source: Mobile Register (AL) Copyright: 2000 Mobile Register. Contact: PO Box 2488, Mobile, AL 36652 Fax: (334)434-8662 Website: http://www.al.com/mobile/ Forum: http://www.al.com/forums/ Author: Casandra Andrews JOB SEEKERS WOULD PAY FOR TEST Mobile County school board members are considering a plan to expand drug and alcohol testing of the work force in Alabama's largest school system, they said Wednesday. Board members contended that the testing will make students safer and workers more productive. A public hearing set for 4 p.m. Feb. 16 will invite local opinions about the policy for the 7,000-employee system. If approved, prospective workers would be tested for drugs and alcohol prior to employment. Workers already on the job would be subject to testing when there is "reasonable suspicion," school board members said. Now, only employees who are required to have commercial driver's licenses - bus drivers, some truck drivers and those who transport hazardous materials - must take pre-employment and random drug tests, according to Susan Brown, a nurse who oversees the employee health program for the system. The new policy would also include random and post-accident testing of all employees who drive system vehicles, not just those with commercial licenses. The proposal, submitted by Paul Tate, assistant superintendent for human resources, says that more than 25 other Alabama school systems require tests of a broader range of drivers. Those include Birmingham and two adjacent systems, Jefferson and Shelby counties. "We didn't have an outbreak" of drug use, superintendent Harold Dodge said Wednesday. "I was just really looking for better ways to protect our teachers and our students." Representatives of the teacher union, which represents more than 5,000 members, said that they saw no problems with the proposal. The system enrolls 65,000 students in nearly 100 schools. "Any person who works around children does not need to be under the influence of drugs in any shape, form or fashion," said school board president Michael Watson. Those who are offered jobs within the system would have to pay about $25 for the testing, school officials said. Prospective employees already pay about $50 for fingerprinting and background checks. Violators could be refused employment, suspended, dismissed or referred for rehabilitation, according to the proposal. The drug testing would screen for substances such as amphetamines, marijuana, cocaine, opiates and PCP (phencyclidine). The Feb. 16 hearing, which is required by law whenever the school board considers changing policy, will be on the second floor of the system's administrative offices in downtown Mobile. - --- MAP posted-by: Derek Rea