Drug and Alcohol Use in the Military Workplace: Findings from the 1988 Worldwide Survey

Drugs and alcohol in the workplace can interfere with an employee’s productivity and safe performance of job responsibilities. The use of drugs can also reduce an employee’s dependability by increasing the number of days lost from work. Drug use by the members of the American workforce carries with it all the risks and problems associated with drug dependence. Studies on the human and economic cost of drug abuse indicate that the direct and indirect costs of drug abuse to business are substantial. These include decreased productivity, absenteeism, accidents at the workplace, additional health care, loss of trained personnel, theft, and the costs associated with prevention, treatment, and deterrence programs. The 1988 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA) indicates that there are 14.5 million current illicit drug users in the United States. Of these, 71 percent are between the ages of 18 and 34. This translates to 10.3 million people. This age group comprises a major part of our workforce. The 1989 White House National Drug Control Strategy states that the workplace is a focus for the prevention of drug abuse for adults. Research on drug use in the workplace cannot be limited to estimating the magnitude of the problem, but also must include the identification and examination of variables which may define and explain behavior patterns. To meet the goals of prevention, demand reduction and treatment, it is crucial to know the sociodemographic characteristics of employees who are at increased risk to abuse drugs or alcohol in order to direct resources within the workforce. This paper will provide prevalence estimates for drug use among the workforce and some of the sociodemographic factors associated with working drug users.