The effects of alcohol use and abuse during and outside of work hours can adversely affect workplace health, safety, and productivity. Employees impaired by the effects of alcohol present a significant safety risk in the workplace and may affect their ability to have proper judgment, coordination, concentration, and attentiveness. Being impaired by the effects of alcohol intoxication can lead to an increased risk of workplace accidents. Hence, that is why proper creation and implementation of a corporate alcohol policy must be in place in order to keep businesses safe from harm and legal issues. In addition, having a highly reliable, consistent and effective method of alcohol testing is vital for success. Breathalysers Australia offers high-quality BACtrack workplace breathalysers that can cover all alcohol breath testing needs of a company.

What should include in the Corporate Alcohol Policy

The corporate alcohol policy should include clear and concise requirements. Employers should convey what their business or company’s goals are. Consequently, employees should understand the requirements clearly and agree to them beforehand.

You may follow these as a guide on what a corporate alcohol policy should include:

• Develop the alcohol policy in consultation with all employees and health and safety representatives.
• The workplace alcohol policy should apply equally to all employees.
• The alcohol policy should clearly state what acceptable behaviour is and the repercussions of violating the procedure. 
• If the workplace policy includes testing, you should clearly outline the testing protocols and procedures.
• Ensure that information on the workplace alcohol policy conveys to all employees. 
• The alcohol policy’s aim should be to minimise alcohol use and abuse risks in the workplace.
• Specify the roles and responsibilities of those implementing the workplace policy and procedure.
• Employees have access to education, training, and information on available treatment or counselling services.

Implementation of the Corporate Alcohol Policy 

When outlining a corporate alcohol policy in the workplace, an employer should set proper guidelines regarding its implementation. Moreover, expressing the expectations for their employees is also helpful. It is to ensure that all workers are aware of the business or company’s needs from them.

You may follow these guidelines if you are implementing and enforcing a corporate alcohol policy:

• The policy and procedures must be transparent to all employees
• Clarify the procedures with workers so they know what to expect from the employer’s requirements
• Ensure employees are aware of the possibility of the different types of testing; such as pre-employment, reasonable suspicion, post-accident or incident, and random testing
• Align the frequency and testing methods to the circumstances of the business or company
• Apply the alcohol testing procedures fairly and justly
• Set up measures to keep testing procedures and test results confidential with proper documentation

In contrast, businesses and companies should not:

• Intentionally single out an individual
• Unjustly punish or give out harsh and unnecessary penalties to employees
• Suddenly change or edit an existing workplace policy and procedure without first telling your employees about it

How Can You Justify the Implementation of the Corporate Alcohol Policy?

Creating and implementing a corporate alcohol policy to conduct alcohol testing is widely accepted. As an employer, implementing a drug and alcohol workplace policy is a reasonable and legitimate response to managing workplace risks and maintaining employee safety. 

Nevertheless, implementing a corporate alcohol policy may cause significant problems for employers. As an employer, you can be held liable for any neglectful or unjust acts committed by an employee impaired by drugs or alcohol. Therefore the employer is obligated to take all reasonable steps to prevent disruptive behaviour. Companies and businesses can do this by implementing  a corporate alcohol policy.

However, some employees would consider alcohol testing to be an unreasonable invasion of their privacy. Deciding to conduct an alcohol test should be based on the effects of impairment on health and safety in the workplace. Conducting an alcohol testing procedure would be highly appropriate for the mining, construction, transportation, and aviation industries. When testing is required, employers must get a worker’s consent before conducting the test. It is crucial information that forcing an employee to undergo testing without their consent may cause the employer to have criminal and civil liability. Moreover, documentation of the test results should be with proper security and confidentiality. The employee’s privacy should be protected after the conclusion of alcohol testing, as stated by the corporate alcohol policy.

Alcohol Breath Testing in the Workplace

A corporate alcohol policy should have adequate and efficient workplace alcohol testing. Among the choices for alcohol testing in the workplace, alcohol breath testing is the most consistent. Alcohol breath tests are quick and highly reliable. Moreover, results can come back immediately, unlike other testing methods that require processing time using registered laboratories. Results from alcohol breath tests also do not require a medical professional’s assistance. You only need to use a breathalyser. Breathalysers are devices that detect the alcohol content in the blood using a breath sample. The breathalysers will be able to measure the exact Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC). BAC results can accurately determine the level of alcohol intoxication. In most workplaces, a zero-alcohol tolerance policy means that all employees under the company must have 0.00% BAC results.

BACtrack Workplace Breathalysers at Breathalysers Australia

If you are looking for an effective alcohol breath testing device, the BACtrack workplace breathalysers at Breathalysers Australia can be the most practical choice. BACtrack workplace breathalysers have professional-grade accuracy. Moreover, they have the issuance of a calibration certificate. Companies that implement a corporate alcohol policy can take advantage of the convenience of a BACtrack workplace breathalyser. BACtrack devices only take 10 to 15 seconds to process BAC results. This feature allows for more frequent alcohol testing in the workplace. Furthermore, the BACtrack breathalyser’s one-button operations make it easy to use for anyone who wants to perform an alcohol breath test. The process is seamless and straightforward.

Additionally, all BACtrack devices use advanced fuel cell sensor technology. These sensors are the same sensors that law enforcement officers use for their police breathalysers. Moreover, BACtrack breathalysers only detect ethanol in breath samples. This sophisticated feature ensures that BAC results come back with as less chance of false results as possible. Thus, ensuring that BAC results are as accurate as possible. Therefore, workplace alcohol breath testing in a corporate alcohol policy can achieve unparalleled precision and compliance with the use of BACtrack workplace breathalysers available at Breathalysers Australia.

Conclusion

In conclusion, together with a properly implemented corporate alcohol policy and the high-quality workplace breathalysers from Breathalysers Australia, companies can ensure that their workplaces are safe from employees that use and abuse alcohol. Breathalysers Australia offers BACtrack devices such as the Mobile Gen2 and S80 Pro Gen2 as well as the Alcovisor Mercury Touchscreen. These devices offer different advantages with regard to efficient workplace alcohol breath testing.