Policy for drug and alcohol testing for OSDR staff

Introduction

This notice sets out the policy regarding drug and alcohol testing of Offshore Major Accident Regulator (OMAR) staff travelling to and undertaking work on offshore installations.

Policy

It is not the practice of OMAR to carry out either pre-employment or random or selective testing of employees for drugs and alcohol. Therefore, OMAR do not permit their employees to take part in testing regimes conducted by external organisations. Employees asked to take part in such testing have been instructed not to take part, and to refer the operator to this policy and, if necessary, to their line manager.

We do not expect operators to prevent OMAR staff from travelling or working offshore when they do not take part in testing. In the unlikely event that an operator has genuine concerns about the fitness of an OMAR employee to board an aircraft, or operate safely offshore, OMAR expects that they would be denied the opportunity to travel or, if already offshore, be dealt with appropriately by the offshore installation manager and returned to shore at the earliest opportunity and that their manager be informed immediately, so that the matter can be handled appropriately using the appropriate departmental policies.