Drug Testing

Last Updated on Monday, 15 March 2010 14:29

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You may have heard recently that a new drug test is available in New Zealand that can detect three months' worth of drug use from a few strands of hair. This is an easy way for your parents to find out if you’ve been taking drugs. NZ Children’s Commissioner John Angus, does not support the move and believes obtaining this info in an underhand and dishonest way, is going to get in the way of the sort of relationship parents and their kids need to help them deal with the issue of drugs.

Different methods of drug testing

A drug test can include the examination of urine, hair, blood, sweat, or oral fluid samples to find out whether you have taken drugs (both illicit and legal) or been drinking alcohol.

Drug searches in schools

The issue of school searches has never been decided by a judge in the New Zealand courts, so the law in this area is not totally clear. Under the Misuse of Drugs Act, a police officer can search you without your consent if they have reasonable grounds to suspect that you have drugs in your possession.

School staff do not have the powers that police do and therefore generally do not have lawful authority to search you for drugs without your informed consent. However, despite this, there may be circumstances in which it would be considered reasonable for them to do so, particularly where there is a risk of imminent harm to yourself or others.

Unreasonable searches for drugs by school staff would include where your school knew drugs were being taken to the school but had no real reason to suspect you in particular. Similarly, searching a whole class would not normally be considered reasonable, as the school could not have a good reason to suspect every student of possessing the item searched for.

In some cases school boards of trustees have consented  to police or private organisations conducting searches using trained sniffer dogs to search areas in the school for illegal drugs. However, unlike the police, private organisations who carry out sniffer dog searches have no legal authority to search an individual whom they suspect of possessing drugs without that person’s consent.

Drug testing at school

The only situation where a school could claim any legal authority to require drug testing of a student is where that student has been suspended and the school Board of Trustees requires that the student agree to drug testing as a condition for reinstatement to school.

However, under the Education Act 1989 conditions for the reinstatement of suspended students must be reasonable – it is very unlikely that such a condition would be considered reasonable if the student was suspended for matters unrelated to proven drug use or possession.

Even if the suspension was for drug use or possession of drugs at school overly harsh drug testing - such as random, suspicion-less drug testing - could also be considered legally unreasonable. The lawfulness of drug testing conditions at school has not been considered by the New Zealand Courts.

Nevertheless, drug use or possession at school is taken very seriously by schools and is likely to result in suspension or stand-down from school or, in some situations, exclusion or expulsion. Most school Boards will require that students in these situations receive some form of therapeutic drug education or counselling.

Drug testing in the workplace

Drug testing is becoming increasingly common in workplaces throughout NZ, including random drug testing. Random drug testing is just that – random. You don't know when your name will be pulled from the hat.  Even with lots of notice, drug testing can still identify drugs you took days, or even weeks earlier, as these can remain in your system for some time.  Frequency of use, the specimen given, the type of test taken and your metabolism can also affect the result.

However, the Courts have ruled that random drug testing is lawful and reasonable in “safety sensitive” workplaces only. If you are concerned at your employer’s drug testing policy get some legal advice from your union, YouthLaw or a community law centre.