Work-related substance misuse

Employee use of psychoactive substances in a manner inconsistent with legal or medical guidelines (i.e., substance misuse) can have counter-productive workplace implications, particularly if, such use results in the failure to report to work, or in attendance in an impaired state. This chapter begins by distinguishing between different types of substances and forms of employee substance use and misuse, preventing prevalence data for several of these forms. Highlighting four categories of work-related risk factors (e.g., stressors, norms), it suggests that factors from multiple categories likely interact with one another to influence substance misuse outcomes. After reviewing the evidence regarding the impact of substance misuse on employee withdrawal, task and contextual performance, and safety, I discuss an integrative model of substance misuse and employee productivity. The chapter concludes by showing how the workplace may be leveraged to both prevent the onset or exacerbation of substance misuse and facilitate treatment and rehabilitation.