Did you know, alcoholism is covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and people with the disease must be offered reasonable accommodations, such as time off for rehab or to attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings? It is true.
Abuse of alcohol is not excluded from ADA protection. Drinking on the job, being drunk or under the influence on the job is unacceptable and the employee may be disciplined.
Alcohol testing may not be required before a conditional offer of employment has been made. Current workers may be assessed only if there is reasonable suspicion the person has been drinking. OSU offers training on our drug free policy and during the training reasonable testing is discussed.
HR Magazine March 2016, “Common Myths About Alcoholism”, by Allen Smith, JD