Drug Testing in Mississippi
DRUG AND ALCOHOL TESTING UNDER THE MISSISSIPPI WORKERS' COMPENSATION LAW 2005
I. Is Drug & Alcohol Testing Required?
The Commissioner of Insurance shall promulgate such rules and regulations as to require each insurer to establish a safety program for the health and benefit of the employees of the insured employer. Such safety program shall include language to explain the rights of workers under the Workers' Compensation Law. Such safety program shall require that all insured employers implement a written policy for drug and alcohol testing in accordance with Section 71-7-1 et seq., Mississippi Code of 1972, in order to ensure that the workplace is a drug and alcohol free environment and to deter the use of drugs and alcohol at the workplace. Miss. Code Ann. §71-3-121 (Rev. 2000).
The Workers' Compensation Law seems clear in requiring that every employer insured under this Law should have a safety program which "shall" include a written drug and alcohol testing policy which complies with Miss. Code Ann. §71-7-1 et seq. (Rev. 2000), the purpose of which is to "ensure that the workplace is a drug and alcohol free environment and to deter the use of drugs and alcohol at the workplace." Regardless of whether the Commissioner of Insurance has promulgated appropriate regulations, and regardless of whether each insurer is providing the appropriate safety program assistance, in the end, §71-3-121 appears to establish a clear legislative intent that employers covered by the Workers' Compensation Law should have a drug and alcohol testing program which complies with the separate Drug and Alcohol Testing of Employees Law, Miss. Code Ann. §71-7-1 et seq. (Rev. 2000), as amended. 1 There is, however, no sanction or penalty in the Workers' Compensation Law for employers that do not have a suitable drug and alcohol testing policy in place. Consider also, the following:
For the purposes of this chapter, the election of a public or private employer to conduct drug and
I. Is Drug & Alcohol Testing Required?
The Commissioner of Insurance shall promulgate such rules and regulations as to require each insurer to establish a safety program for the health and benefit of the employees of the insured employer. Such safety program shall include language to explain the rights of workers under the Workers' Compensation Law. Such safety program shall require that all insured employers implement a written policy for drug and alcohol testing in accordance with Section 71-7-1 et seq., Mississippi Code of 1972, in order to ensure that the workplace is a drug and alcohol free environment and to deter the use of drugs and alcohol at the workplace. Miss. Code Ann. §71-3-121 (Rev. 2000).
The Workers' Compensation Law seems clear in requiring that every employer insured under this Law should have a safety program which "shall" include a written drug and alcohol testing policy which complies with Miss. Code Ann. §71-7-1 et seq. (Rev. 2000), the purpose of which is to "ensure that the workplace is a drug and alcohol free environment and to deter the use of drugs and alcohol at the workplace." Regardless of whether the Commissioner of Insurance has promulgated appropriate regulations, and regardless of whether each insurer is providing the appropriate safety program assistance, in the end, §71-3-121 appears to establish a clear legislative intent that employers covered by the Workers' Compensation Law should have a drug and alcohol testing program which complies with the separate Drug and Alcohol Testing of Employees Law, Miss. Code Ann. §71-7-1 et seq. (Rev. 2000), as amended. 1 There is, however, no sanction or penalty in the Workers' Compensation Law for employers that do not have a suitable drug and alcohol testing policy in place. Consider also, the following:
For the purposes of this chapter, the election of a public or private employer to conduct drug and