Industries that are safety-sensitive, such as the aviation industry, must adhere to rigorous standards to maintain a drug-and alcohol-free workplace. Many employers that are regulated by the FAA must have a drug and alcohol testing program. If you have questions or concerns about aviation compliance for your company, you can get in touch with a drug testing company that has experience with FAA regulations.
Who is required to test by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)?
- All Part 121 and Part 135 Certificate holders, an operator as defined in §135.1(c)
- Air traffic control facilities not operated by the FAA or by or under contract to the U.S. military comply with the anti-drug program regulations
- All operators as defined by 14 CFR Part 91.147
- Part 145 Repair Facilities who perform safety-sensitive functions are subject to these regulations.
Safety-Sensitive Employees
All safety-sensitive employees for companies that are required to test must be routinely drug tested. This includes employees who are part-time, full-time, temporary, and seasonal. Some examples of safety-sensitive functions include:
- Flight crewmember duties
- Flight attendant duties
- Flight instruction duties
- Aircraft dispatcher duties
- Aircraft maintenance and preventive maintenance duties
- Ground security coordinator duties
- Aviation screening duties
- Air traffic control duties
- Operations Control Specialist
Pre-Employment Tests
All job candidates for a safety-sensitive job must undergo a pre-employment drug test and receive a verified negative result before they can perform job duties. The same policy applies to individuals who transfer from a non-safety-sensitive job to a safety-sensitive job.
Random Testing
Each year, the Federal Register publishes the minimum annual percentage rate. This is the minimum number of safety-sensitive employees who must undergo random drug or alcohol testing. For example, the annual rate for any given year may be 25% for drug testing and 10% for alcohol testing. This would mean that 25% of safety-sensitive employees must undergo a random drug test, and 10% of them must undergo a random alcohol test. The FAA doesn’t specify how often random testing must be conducted. However, it’s generally expected that aviation employers will space out the testing throughout the year in an unpredictable fashion. There should be no advance notification to employees that they have been selected for random testing. As soon as notifications are made, the employees should immediately proceed to the collection site.
Oschmann Employee Screening Services is a national provider of drug and alcohol testing and employee background check services with offices in Tucson, AZ and Phoenix, AZ. Our company has program managers who specialize in aviation compliance. Call (800) 224-8532 with your questions about our FAA drug testing services.
