Random drug and alcohol testing on all Toronto Transit Commission employees will soon begin as the agency moves forward in implementing a decision approved in 2011.
TTC CEO Andy Byford said the board approved the decision to implement and fund the random testing despite years of complaints on the policy from the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 113, headed by Bob Kinnear, which represents TTC drivers, reported Shawn Jeffords of the Sun.
The random testing will be in addition to the agency’s current “fitness-for-duty” policy, which requires that TTC employees be tested for drug or alcohol impairment “after a serious incident; for ‘reasonable cause’ (such as appearing to be drunk); if they’re returning from rehab; and before they are hired,” according to the Star.
The decision to move forward with the testing came after increasing incidents of TTC employee impairment or refusal to take a mandatory test, reported Ramna Shahzad of the CBC, who also reported that the testing will only focus on impairment on the job and that what employees did in their own time would be none of the agency’s business unless it affected performance ability on the job, notes the report.
Brad Ross, TTC executive and spokesman, tweeted a copy of the memo sent to TTC staff regarding the implementation of the random testing.
Many TTC users and Toronto citizens, like Twitter user @TheRealNar, think the agency’s new pre-emptive measure will be good for public safety.
Others, including Kinnear, stress that drug and alcohol use are not the main reasons for impairment while on the job among TTC drivers, but rather sleep deprivation caused by long hours and split shifts, said the Star. Adam Giambrone, director of the Brooklyn Queens Connector streetcar in New York City, says the TTC should focus on that issue instead.
