Pubdate: Tue, 28 May 2002 Source: Star-Ledger (NJ) Copyright: 2002 Newark Morning Ledger Co Contact: http://www.nj.com/starledger/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/424 Author: Bob Barrett DRUG TESTS CAN HELP In her May 7 letter, Melissa Gordon, a senior at Hanover Park High School, claims that drug tests violate rights. Before retiring from a large New Jersey utility, I wrote and implemented a drug testing policy for employees of contractors working at electric and gas facilities. The policy was modeled after policies of other companies that met all legal requirements to protect the rights of workers but also to assure that workers were not using illegal drugs. We required that testing laboratories submit monthly reports indicating the number, not the names, of those failing drug tests. We consistently averaged about 5 percent using illegal drugs. I often use the tragic stories of Darryl Strawberry and Robert Downey Jr. when I discuss this subject with people who share Gordon's view. Strawberry, a great athlete, never reached his potential because of addiction to drugs. Downey, a talented actor, went to jail because of drugs. If drug testing had been mandatory in their youth, it is very possible that their drug use would have been detected and they could have stopped before they were addicted. Bob Barrett, Clark - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens