The Controversy of a Co-Worker on Drugs
There is nothing more frustrating than trying to determine the best course of action when you realize that you have a co-worker on drugs. There are a number of thoughts that goes through a person’s mind:
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“It’s none of my business”
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“Management will figure it out soon enough.”
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“Maybe I should talk to them, try to help,”
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And so on.
The co-worker is a problem because of his drug use in a number of ways. Just as big of a problem is what you are supposed to do about it. Let’s examine.
The safe route – It is none of your business. Sadly – it’s not a safe route, moreover, it is affecting you and your work performance, so it seems that their personal choice coming into the workplace is in fact becoming more and more your business. Routine habits such as continued tardiness, missed days, poorly done work, etc. are all making it harder and harder on you to perform your duties. More and more the management is noticing “bumps in the road” coming from your zone – they don’t know yet who the problem is, they may do a blanket cleaning up – because nobody really wants to dive in too personally. You could find yourself out of work simply because you operated from the viewpoint that the coworker had a habit that was none of your business.
The “other” safe route – Management will figure it out soon enough. If you are fortunate enough to work for a company that does routine drug testing, then maybe so. There is a check and balance system in place that will protect you and the rest of the employees, weed out the person with the problem, and maybe even instead of letting that person go, there is an insurance plan and an opportunity for the person to seek treatment and get himself or herself back on the right road to being a productive employee.
The other scenario is that Management won’t figure it out, there is no program, and eventually the person gets fired, and as discussed above, maybe you too.
The more direct route – Talking to them. Sometimes you can do this, and sometimes you can even help. There is much honor and respect in reaching out to someone in need or with a problem and offering to help them. Be fully aware of the actions and habits of a drug user, however, do not allow yourself in an attempt to help them to be used or played. Give them the help of locating programs they can go into, and making it clear that you will not pick up the slack for them when they are not performing well. Do not loan them money or listen to their sad stories. Just give them the right information to get professional help. If they take the help, you’ve done a good thing, if they don’t, you can at least satisfy yourself with the knowledge that you tried.
Ultimately, you are stuck with the problem, and that is where the controversy comes in. No matter what you decide, the person is or will impact you. The society we live in today frowns upon “ratting”, which is a sad thing. When a person is on drugs and using them in the work place, and we all stand around saying and doing nothing, we are not helping them, or ourselves, and we are suffering. Whereas a simple approach of letting it be known, may just save a life and definitely help to save your job.