A Job Hunter's Guide To Drug And Criminal Background Checks

If you're currently job searching and you have been reading about drug, alcohol, and criminal background checks, then you might be a bit curious as to how the process works. While not all jobs will entail a thorough test for drugs and alcohol or a deep criminal background check, there are many that will. These jobs can include school bus driver, warehouse worker, waiter at a restaurant, or an office job. And don't think that you will be exempt from the tests just because you will be applying for a particular type of job. Here's a brief introduction about the different processes and what they entail.

Drug Testing

Employers will often request a drug screening. This is done in order to ensure that they don't hire someone who will be a liability to the office. A drug user can end up causing an accident while at work and cause injury to the other employees. Even if they only injure themselves, it's a problem that the employer won't want to deal with (workers comp, potential lawsuits, etc.). Additionally, there are issues such as employee behavior that an employer might want to avoid—negative traits such as theft, aggressive behavior towards customers or co-workers, or other issues.

Drug testing is most often done using a urine analysis. However, it can also be done using hair sample testing or blood testing. Breath testing is also done, but this is mostly relegated to the testing of alcohol. Hair analysis gives the longest "look back," which means that it can detect the presence of drugs after they leave the blood and urine. However, this method is more costly, so it's not often administered. Common drugs that are looked for during the test include marijuana, cocaine, barbiturates, heroin, and  methamphetamine. Different drugs have a different "detection window," which is the time that they can be located via a test. For instance, amphetamines tend to vanish from the body within a short time frame when compared to to marijuana. To learn more about drug and alcohol testing, contact a facility like Physical Exams Inc.

Criminal Background Tests

Another issue that many potential employees will face is a criminal background check. This is done to tell if the person has a history of crime that is relevant. For instance, an employee might have a history of petty theft, which would make them undesirable to an employer who is looking to hire a cashier. The important thing to know is that your employer cannot legally do a criminal background without your permission. However, you should know that if you do not consent to a background check, they very likely will not consider you for employment. So, if there is an issue, it's best deal with upfront and honestly.


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