Pub. 2 2019-2020 Issue 4

20 T he phrase“the elephant in the room” refers to an issue that is too large to ignore or sweep under the carpet and have the potential to be disruptive if left unaddressed. These issues apply as much in our personal lives outside of work as it does in the workplace. A major reason organizations (and families) do not address these “elephants in the room” is the fear of the unknown, including the unknown ripple-effects of addressing the issue beingoverlooked. One such“elephant in the room” in the construction industry is alcohol and substance misuse among the collective workforce. Why Alcohol and Substance Use Is “An Elephant in the Room” The data is too impor tant to ignore. According to the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the construction industry workforce has the second-highest rate of heavy drinking, described as 5-7 drinks in a single setting. Moreover, data from Quest Diagnostics annual Drug Testing Index continues to show concerning substancemisuse trends in construction, among other industries, including rising positive tests for mar- ijuana, post-accident tests and among federally regulated safety-sensitive posi- tions. (See Resources formore information.) Unfortunately, similar data does not exist for alcohol tests. From the data on sub- stancemisuse, it can be argued that a com- prehensive substance use testing program is no longer adequate for deterring sub- stance misuse. Why the “Elephant in the Room” Can No Longer Be Ignored The consequences are too great to not address substancemisuse by workers. First and foremost, the safety of the workforce and the general public is at risk. Despite the decreasing rates of recordable and lost time injury case rates, the frequency of serious injuries and fatalities continues to remain stable over the past two decades. Many safety, human performance andwell-being professionals are focusing on“what’s under the hardhat” to explain this phenomenon. The role of fatigue, impairment and distrac- tion fromsubstancemisusemust be consid- ered while also recognizing that work and schedules may compound this fatigue and mental stress. Work schedules and the chal- lenge of production may create and foster unexpected substance use while coping with long hours, time away fromhome, iso- lation and out of town work. More needs to be done to help educate the workforce, including supervisors and leaders, about By Karyn Salerno and Cal Beyer, CSDZ, a Holmes Murphy Company THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM TACKL I NG THE CONSTRUC T ION WORKFORCE ’S ALCOHOL AND SUBSTANCE USE I SSUES the importance of substance misuse and the associated complications of “what’s under the hardhat. ” Why the “Elephant in the Room” Can No Longer be Accepted Chris DeHerrera, CEO of the Associated Builders and Contractors of Utah, cited sta- tistics fromABC’s 2020 Safety Performance Report showing that “one-third of all inci- dents on construction job sites are drug-or alcohol-related. ” DeHerrera continues, “Substance abuse programs and policies with provisions for drug and alcohol testing where permitted lead to a 66% reduction in TRIR and a 67% reduction in DART rates and can be an effectivemethod of incident prevention if used properly. ” Bryan McCurdy, human resources direc- tor for Lakeview Rock Products in North Salt Lake, Utah, states, “We have accepted a problem that should not be an accept- able problem. Why arewewilling to accept these behaviors? Is it because the behav- iors are not affecting us all the time?” Calling out the “Elephant in the Room” A “gut-check” question company leaders must consider is, “are you accepting sub- stance misuse because behaviors may not manifest as an immediate issueor problem”? If that is not compelling enough, then leaders should also consider the potential effects substance misuse can have on key operational factors, including productivity, schedule, job site safety, quality and rework, owner concerns or delays, and profitability. To make matters even more real, in a Construction Executive article titled“Opioid and Substance Abuse in the Construction Industry,” author Marko Kaar states there are more deaths by suicide and opioid overdoses in the AEC industry than those attributed annually to OSHA’s Focus Four. Armed with this information, contractors need to expand the level of behavioral