HB 522: "An Act relating to employer drug and alcohol testing programs."
00HOUSE BILL NO. 522 01 "An Act relating to employer drug and alcohol testing programs." 02 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 03 * Section 1. AS 23.10 is amended by adding new sections to read: 04 ARTICLE 9. DRUG AND ALCOHOL TESTING BY EMPLOYERS. 05 Sec. 23.10.600. EMPLOYER PROTECTION FROM LITIGATION. (a) If an 06 employer has established a drug and alcohol testing policy and initiated a testing 07 program under AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699, a person may not bring an action for 08 damages against the employer for 09 (1) actions in good faith based on the results of a positive drug test or 10 alcohol impairment test; 11 (2) failure to test for drugs or alcohol impairment or failure to test for 12 a specific drug or another controlled substance; 13 (3) failure to test or, if tested, failure to detect a specific drug or other 14 substance, a medical condition, or a mental, emotional, or psychological disorder or
01 condition; or 02 (4) termination or suspension of a drug or alcohol prevention or testing 03 program or policy. 04 (b) A person may not bring an action for damages based on test results against 05 an employer who has established and implemented a drug and alcohol testing program 06 under AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699 unless the employer's action was based on a false 07 positive test result and the employer knew or clearly should have known that the result 08 was in error and ignored the true test result because of reckless or malicious disregard 09 for the truth or the wilful intent to deceive or be deceived. 10 (c) In a claim, including a claim under AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699, if it is 11 alleged that an employer's action was based on a false positive test result, 12 (1) there is a rebuttable presumption that the test result was valid if the 13 employer complied with the provisions of AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699; and 14 (2) the employer is not liable for monetary damages if the employer's 15 reliance on a false positive test result was reasonable and in good faith. 16 (d) A person may not bring an action for damages against an employer for an 17 action taken related to a false negative drug test or alcohol impairment test. 18 (e) A person may not bring an action against an employer based on failure 19 of the employer to establish a program or policy on substance abuse prevention or to 20 implement drug testing or alcohol impairment testing. 21 Sec. 23.10.610. LIMITS ON CAUSES OF ACTION FOR DISCLOSURES. 22 A person may not bring an action for defamation of character, libel, slander, or 23 damage to reputation against an employer who has established a program of drug 24 testing or alcohol impairment testing under AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699 unless 25 (1) the results of the test were disclosed to a person other than the 26 employer, an authorized employee, agent or representative of the employer, the tested 27 employee, the tested prospective employee, or another person authorized or privileged 28 by law to receive the information; 29 (2) the information disclosed was a false positive test result; 30 (3) the false positive test result was disclosed negligently; and 31 (4) all elements of an action for defamation of character, libel, slander,
01 or damage to reputation as established by law are satisfied. 02 Sec. 23.10.615. EMPLOYER'S COMPLIANCE VOLUNTARY. Compliance 03 with AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699 by employers is voluntary. A person may not bring 04 an action for damages against an employer because the employer has a drug testing 05 and alcohol impairment testing policy that is not in compliance with AS 23.10.600 - 06 23.10.699. 07 Sec. 23.10.620. EMPLOYER POLICY. (a) Under AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699, 08 an employer may only carry out the testing or retesting for the presence of drugs or 09 alcohol after adopting a written policy for the testing and retesting and informing 10 employees of the policy. The employer may inform employees by distributing a copy 11 of the policy to each employee subject to testing or making the policy available to 12 employees in the same manner as the employer informs its employees of other 13 personnel practices, including inclusion in a personnel handbook or manual or posting 14 in a place accessible to employees. The employer shall inform prospective employees 15 that they must undergo drug testing. 16 (b) The written policy on drug and alcohol testing must include, at a minimum, 17 (1) a statement of the employer's policy respecting drug and alcohol 18 use by employees; 19 (2) a description of those employees or prospective employees who are 20 subject to testing; 21 (3) the circumstances under which testing may be required; 22 (4) the substances as to which testing may be required; 23 (5) a description of the testing methods and collection procedures to be 24 used; 25 (6) the consequences of a refusal to participate in the testing; 26 (7) any adverse personnel action that may be taken based on the testing 27 procedure or results; 28 (8) the right of an employee, on the employee's request, to obtain the 29 written test results; 30 (9) the right of an employee, on the employee's request, to explain in 31 a confidential setting, a positive test result;
01 (10) a statement of the employer's policy regarding the confidentiality 02 of the test results. 03 (c) An employer may require the collection and testing of a sample of an 04 employee's or prospective employee's urine, blood, breath, saliva, hair, or other bodily 05 substance for any job-related purpose consistent with business necessity and the terms 06 of the employer's policy, including 07 (1) investigation of possible individual employee impairment; 08 (2) investigation of accidents in the workplace; an employee may be 09 required to undergo drug testing or alcohol impairment testing for an accident if the 10 test is taken as soon as practicable after an accident and the test is administered to 11 employees who the employer reasonably believes may have contributed to the accident; 12 (3) maintenance of safety for employees, customers, clients, or the 13 public at large; 14 (4) maintenance of productivity, the quality of products or services, or 15 security of property or information; 16 (5) reasonable suspicion that an employee may be affected by the use 17 of drugs or alcohol and that the use may adversely affect the job performance or the 18 work environment. 19 (d) In addition to tests required under (c) of this section, an employer may 20 require employees or groups of employees to undergo drug testing on a random or 21 chance basis. 22 (e) If an employer institutes a policy of drug testing or alcohol impairment 23 testing under AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699, the policy must uniformly include all 24 compensated employees including officers, directors, and supervisors. 25 (f) The provisions of AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699 may not be construed to 26 encourage, discourage, restrict, limit, prohibit, or require on-site drug testing or alcohol 27 impairment testing. 28 Sec. 23.10.630. COLLECTION OF SAMPLES. (a) An employer may require 29 an employee to undergo a test for the presence of drugs or for alcohol impairment. 30 An employer may require a prospective employee to undergo a test for the presence 31 of drugs.
01 (b) In order to test reliably, an employer may require an employee or 02 prospective employee to provide a sample of the individual's urine, blood, breath, 03 saliva, hair, or other bodily substance and to present reliable individual identification 04 to the person collecting the sample. Collection of the sample must conform to the 05 requirements of AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699. The employer may designate the type of 06 sample to be used for testing. 07 (c) An employer shall normally schedule a drug test or an alcohol impairment 08 test of employees during, or immediately before or after, a regular work period. 09 Alcohol impairment or drug testing required by an employer is considered to be work 10 time for the purposes of compensation and benefits for current employees. 11 (d) An employer shall pay the entire actual costs for drug testing and alcohol 12 impairment testing required of employees. An employer shall also pay reasonable 13 transportation costs to an employee if the required test is conducted at a location other 14 than the employee's normal work site. An employer is not required to pay the costs 15 of drug testing of prospective employees. 16 Sec. 23.10.640. TESTING PROCEDURES. (a) Sample collection and testing 17 for alcohol impairment and drugs under AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699 shall be performed 18 under reasonable and sanitary conditions. The person collecting samples shall 19 document the sample, including labeling the sample to preclude to the extent 20 reasonable the possibility of misidentification of the person tested in relation to the test 21 result provided, and shall provide the person to be tested with an opportunity to 22 provide medical information that may be relevant to the test, including identifying 23 current or recently used prescription and nonprescription drugs. 24 (b) Sample collection, storage, and transportation to the place of testing shall 25 be performed in a manner reasonably designed to preclude the possibility of sample 26 contamination, adulteration, or misidentification. 27 (c) Sample testing must comply with scientifically accepted analytical methods 28 and procedures. Drug testing shall be conducted at a laboratory approved or certified 29 by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, the College of 30 American Pathologists, or the state Department of Health and Social Services. 31 (d) For employees, drug testing must include confirmation of a positive drug
01 test result. The confirmation must be by use of a different chemical process than was 02 used in the initial drug screen. The second or confirmatory drug test shall be a 03 chromatography mass spectrometry or other reliable chromatographic technique. 04 Sec. 23.10.650. DISCIPLINARY PROCEDURES. (a) An employer may take 05 adverse employment action based on 06 (1) a positive drug test or alcohol impairment test result that indicates 07 a violation of the employer's written policy; 08 (2) the refusal of an employee or prospective employee to provide a 09 drug testing sample; or 10 (3) the refusal of an employee to provide an alcohol impairment testing 11 sample. 12 (b) Adverse employment action under (a) of this section may include 13 (1) a requirement that the employee enroll in an employer provided or 14 employer approved rehabilitation, treatment, or counseling program; the program may 15 include additional drug testing and alcohol impairment testing; the employer may 16 require participation in the program as a condition of employment; costs of 17 participating in the program may or may not be covered by the employer's health plan 18 or policies; 19 (2) suspension of the employee, with or without pay, for a designated 20 period of time; 21 (3) termination of employment; 22 (4) in case of drug testing, refusal to hire a prospective employee; and 23 (5) other adverse employment action. 24 Sec. 23.10.660. CONFIDENTIALITY OF RESULTS; ACCESS TO 25 RECORDS. A communication received by an employer relevant to drug test or 26 alcohol impairment test results and received through the employer's testing program 27 is a confidential communication and may not be disclosed except 28 (1) to the tested employee or prospective employee or another person 29 designated in writing by the employee or prospective employee; 30 (2) to individuals designated by an employer to receive and evaluate 31 test results or hear the explanation of the employee or prospective employee; or
01 (3) as ordered by a court or governmental agency. 02 Sec. 23.10.670. COLLECTIVE BARGAINING. An employer who follows the 03 provisions of a drug testing or alcohol impairment testing policy negotiated or 04 bargained to impasse with the collective bargaining representative of the employer's 05 employees or consistent with the terms of a collective bargaining agreement shall 06 receive the full benefits of AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699 even if the policy is not 07 consistent with AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699. 08 Sec. 23.10.680. EFFECT OF MANDATORY TESTING OBLIGATIONS. An 09 employer who is obligated by state or federal requirements to have a drug testing or 10 alcohol impairment testing policy or program shall receive the full benefits of 11 AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699 even if the required policy or program is not consistent with 12 AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699, so long as the employer complies with the state or federal 13 requirements applicable to the employer's operations. 14 Sec. 23.10.699. DEFINITIONS. In AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699, 15 (1) "alcohol" means ethanol, isopropanol, or methanol; 16 (2) "drugs" means a substance considered unlawful under AS 11.71 or 17 the metabolite of the substance; 18 (3) "employee" means a person in the service of an employer; 19 (4) "employer" 20 (A) means a person who employs one or more full-time 21 employees under a contract of hire, express or implied, oral or written; 22 (B) does not include the state, a municipality or other political 23 subdivision of the state, or the federal government; 24 (5) "good faith" means reasonable reliance on fact, or that which is held 25 out to be factual, without the intent to deceive or be deceived and without reckless or 26 malicious disregard for the truth; 27 (6) "prospective employee" means a person who has made application 28 to an employer, whether written or oral, to become an employee; 29 (7) "sample" means urine, blood, breath, saliva, hair, or other 30 substances from the person being tested. 31 * Sec. 2. AS 23.20.379(a) is amended to read:
01 (a) An insured worker is disqualified for waiting-week credit or benefits for 02 the first week in which the insured worker is unemployed and for the next five weeks 03 of unemployment following that week if the insured worker 04 (1) left the insured worker's last suitable work voluntarily without good 05 cause; or 06 (2) was discharged for misconduct connected with the insured worker's 07 work; in this paragraph, misconduct includes failure to pass, or the refusal to 08 take, a drug test or alcohol impairment test administered by, or at the request of, 09 an employer in accordance with AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699. 10 * Sec. 3. AS 23.20.406(h) is amended to read: 11 (h) An individual is not eligible to receive extended benefits for any week of 12 unemployment in the individual's eligibility period if the individual has been 13 disqualified for benefits because the individual voluntarily left work, was discharged 14 for misconduct, or refused an offer of suitable work, unless the disqualification 15 imposed for those reasons has been terminated in accordance with AS 23.20.379(d). 16 In this subsection, misconduct includes failure to pass, or the refusal to take, a 17 drug test or alcohol impairment test administered by, or at the request of, an 18 employer in accordance with AS 23.10.600 - 23.10.699.