Aviation employees face mandatory drug testing

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3/05/2006

Aviation employees face mandatory drug testing
BYLINE

Mandatory drug and alcohol testing will be introduced for aviation employees, including pilots and cabin crew, under new Federal Government regulations.

Those subject to the new regulations include pilots and cabin crew, flight crew, ground refuellers, baggage handlers, security screeners, air traffic controllers and other personnel with airside access at airports.

The testing is expected to involve screening applicants prior to them taking on safety-sensitive roles, random on-the-job testing and monitoring the effectiveness of rehabilitation as an employee prepares to return to work.

Announcing the plan, to be phased in over the next 18 months, Federal minister for transport and regional services Warren Truss said it was “appropriate” for the aviation sector to introduce drug testing given that it had already been implemented for workers in the road transport, mining and forestry industries.

"The testing will be supported by educational initiatives to warn of the dangers posed by drug and alcohol use, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, and the additional risks they can pose in a safety-sensitive, aviation environment,” Truss said.

He said that civil aviation regulations would be developed to facilitate a range of testing to be implemented by the industry, with a reporting requirement to the aviation safety regulator CASA.

A similar system has existed in the United States for many years.

3 May 2006

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