90% employers concerned about ‘workplace impairment’

The latest US National Safety Council (NSC) survey shows that 90% of employers are concerned about workplace impairment – resulting from mental health and chronic stress – impacting ‘fitness for duty’.

However, the definition and description of workplace impairment is generally limited to chemical/substance abuse. The NSC is therefore urging employers to widen the definition of workplace impairment to include physical factors like fatigue, mental distress and stress.

“The National Safety Council has been the nation’s safety watchdog for more than 100 years, identifying emerging issues and developing resources to help keep workers safe from the workplace to anyplace,” stated Lorraine Martin, NSC President and CEO. “We believe the issue of impairment is multifaceted and therefore requires an approach that recognises all aspects of it. We urge employers to join us in looking at impairment through the new lens that our current moment demands.”

WORKPLACE IMPAIRMENT 

Although persistent concerns around legal and illicit substance misuse remains, more than half of employers surveyed by NSC (52%) said they believe physical impairment as a result of the pandemic is decreasing the safety of their workforce; and affecting an employee’s ‘fitness for duty’. While 70% of employers said they discuss substance impairment during employee onboarding, only 47% said they discuss other forms of impairment, such as fatigue, mental health and stress. 

In response to the survey findings, NSC has called on all employers to now consider factors such as stress and fatigue, as well as substance misuse when addressing workplace impairment. NSC wants employer policies and procedures to extend its definition of workplace impairment to anything that could impede one’s ability to function normally or safely as a result of a number of factors. They should include physical factors like fatigue, as well as mental distress and social factors like stress; and not limit the definition as a result of chemical substances, such as alcohol, opioids or cannabis, which is usually the case.

NSC began a holistic assessment of “workplace impairment” last year as the pandemic raged, and found that 93% of employers agreed with a broader description; one that extends beyond substances to include health and wellbeing. 

WORKPLACE SAFETY

Impairment has been a workplace safety issue for decades. The pandemic, however, has forced a new era of workplace safety; one in which employers are grappling with increased substance use and misuse, as well as increased mental health distress. This includes depression and anxiety, and medical conditions that frequently are interrelated. In particular, the pandemic has worsened the country’s opioid crisis, which has been challenging employers for several years, confirmed NSC. In the 12-month period ending in May 2020, there were 81,000 fatal drug overdoses – the highest number ever recorded. 

No matter what’s keeping employees from working or driving safely, NSC said it stands ready to help employers deal with the impacts of impairment in the workplace with a robust offering of free resources and tools to help businesses manage these emerging issues. This include cost calculators to understand the business case around substance misuse and fatigue in the workplace; and toolkits to implement strategies to proactively address opioids and fatigue. 

Additionally, NSC is tackling mental health in the workplace as part of its  SAFER effort and providing guidance for employers to effectively address it. Click here for more information.