How to Effectively Manage Employees Amidst the Addiction Epidemic

Due to the addiction epidemic, businesses and professionals all over the world are facing challenges of employee substance use and misuse and the impact on retention of quality staff. The ability to support employees through substance misuse prevention and intervention while providing non-judgmental and confidential access to treatment and recovery support services is critical to retaining a quality workforce.

Consistent, focused, attentive and caring supervision is key in preventing substance misuse and implementing effective intervention strategies and successful employee re-entry into the workforce. Recovery Business Association aims to provide meaningful and practical guidelines in an effort to support executives, managers, supervisors and human resource staff facing workforce issues associated with substance use, misuse and recovery among employees.

Substance Misuse Doesn't Discriminate

RBA helps businesses of all sizes to identify and implement various prevention, intervention and reintegration strategies that can be used in all types of workforce environments. Typically we provide support as if it is the employee intervening is an executive, supervisor or human resource staff person. However, since substance misuse can and does occur at all levels of the organization, interventions must be provided at all levels as well. It should be noted that quality intervention is never a one-person job. When substance misuse occurs in the workforce, it is vitally important that agency executives, decision- makers, risk managers, human resources staff and legal counsel provide consultation, supervision and guidance according to their roles, responsibilities and expertise.

A GUIDE FOR EXECUTIVES, MANAGERS AND HUMAN RESOURCE STAFF ON HOW TO ADDRESS SUBSTANCE USE PREVENTION, TREATMENT & RECOVERY IN THE WORKPLACE

RBA provides a toolkit for executives, managers and human resource staff on how to address substance use prevention, treatment and recovery in the workplace. Key content in this guide is summarized from the Partners for Recovery Supporting Our Greatest Resource: Addressing Substance Use, Misuse and Relapse in the Addiction Treatment Workforce toolkit, which was prepared under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT), and the Partners for Recovery (PFR) initiative within CSAT. The toolkit was initially designed to be as universally applicable as possible, but while every attempt was made to ensure legal requirements are met, they should not be substituted for independent legal counsel. Additional local, State and Federal laws may apply.

Read the full toolkit here.