Comments on: Appeals Court Rules On State Employee Drug Testing

By: C

Fri, 31 May 2013 00:17:13 +0000

It’s funny how some of you speak of state employees as some sort of subset of society. State employees, despite your descriptions, ARE taxpayers. We must abide by the same laws that prevents illicit drug use. I assure you that there is no “free reign to use or abuse narcotics with no chance of ever being tested”. We follow the same laws every other Florida resident does…or does not .

By: David Huie Green

David Huie Green — Thu, 30 May 2013 20:12:50 +0000

cygie,
It’s considered a search of their persons since it is intended to search them for drug use. It’s considered an unreasonable search for the very reason you cite: it is done without any reason to suspect illegal drug use. Further, even if they ARE breaking the law, they are not considered a public danger unless the messing up of their minds puts others in danger.

For example a doped up or drunk bus driver is a danger to all, so pre employment testing is a reasonable search. Testing after an at-fault driving event is reasonable since drugs may explain it. Random testing is harder to justify other than the continuing danger and is why I get tested every now and then.

Testing in other jobs should legal for new hires even without a safety need.
Testing old hires shouldn’t be legal since it takes away an existing right under threat of firing. (Hiring and firing are different animals.)

By: Bobby

Bobby — Thu, 30 May 2013 18:31:29 +0000

I don’t have a problem with them drug testing state employees but it should NOT just be about safety concerns that target specific jobs. It should be ALL state employees. You shouldn’t get any money from the gov’t if you are doing anything illegal. It also should not stop with state employees. The drug testing policy should reach out to everyone who gets money from the state such as state reps., senators, judges, DA’s, Sheriffs, court appointed attorney’s and possibly even companies working under a state contract. If drug testing laws included elected state officials, they would be rulled unconstitutional in a heartbeat. haha

By: 429SCJ

429SCJ — Thu, 30 May 2013 16:37:09 +0000

I feel employees should be screened also for Alcohol and Nicotine use as well.

Just as a spade is a spade, a drug is a drug. A person should not be judged by the atoms in their molecule chain of choice.

I would rather have an employee who had smoked a joint the night before as opposed to one who had consumed 750 ML of alcohol.

By: mick

mick — Thu, 30 May 2013 14:47:19 +0000

Start drug testing state employees… your gonna lose a lot of workers thus opening up many positions to be filled…. I know of at least one UWF worker thats praying this doesnt happen!

By: Jim

Jim — Thu, 30 May 2013 14:10:09 +0000

I am subject to random drug testing for my current job, and when I was in the military as well. No one is forced to have a drug test, but if they want to work they will do it. I think that anyone who wants money from the government should be required to submit to drug screening. Word it like the privacy act statement. You don’t have to do this, but if you want this you have to.

By: cygie

cygie — Thu, 30 May 2013 13:29:09 +0000

Not really clear as to how the Fourth Amendment is violated, as random testing is just that; random. This is not, in my opinion, illegal search/seizure.

So we as the tax payer must abide by the law and not use illegal drugs or abuse prescription drugs, but a state employee has free reign to use or abuse narcotics with no chance of ever being tested for them. That would seem to be exclusionary.

By: Henry Coe

Henry Coe — Thu, 30 May 2013 13:13:04 +0000

Note that Gov Scott’s wife (wink, wink) owns health clinics that provide drug testing services. Not that there is a conflict of interest in this for Gov Scott? Heaven forbid. Obviously Gov Scott must know if there are enough state employees that are on drugs to justify this expense of guilty until proven innocent.

By: 429SCJ

429SCJ — Thu, 30 May 2013 11:56:54 +0000

I wonder why the ACLU never speaks up for the Military?

I guess they want sober personnel to fight their people’s wars for them.