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sportscotland
Human Resources Toolkit
Alcohol & Substance Abuse

1.0 Introduction
1.1 sportscotland is committed to ensuring the health, safety and welfare of its
employees and those affected by its activities. sportscotland will take all reasonable
steps to reduce, if not eliminate, the risk of injuries and incidents occurring due to
employees suffering from the effects of alcohol or substance abuse.

1.2 sportscotland regards the health, safety and wellbeing of its employees and visitors
as an integral part of the business and as a management priority.

1.3 It is expected that all employees must not consume alcohol or controlled substances
whilst on sportscotland premises, at work or whilst in charge of sportscotland
vehicles (including lease cars).

However, it is recognised that there are formal and informal social occasions when
employees of sportscotland are invited to represent the organisation then at which
time individual discretion should be exercised.

2.0 Scope of Policy

2.1 sportscotland’s policy is to:

 ensure the health and safety of employees/visitors through preventing accidents

caused as a result of alcohol and/or substance abuse

 prevent or reduce the incidence of alcohol and/or substance abuse problems

relating to work relating performance and/or conduct

 engender a culture which removes the potential tendency for employees to

conceal, deny and cover-up alcohol and/or substance related problems and give
employees support and confidence to deal with them

 provide support and offer counselling for any employees who are dependant on
alcohol or a controlled substance

 undertake and regularly review risk assessments to identify and assess the risks
associated with alcohol and substance abuse

 prohibit the drinking of alcohol by employees when on sportscotland time and/or

representing sportscotland thus negating the risk of any of the following
happening:

o where an employee is over the legal limit stipulated for driving

o where an employee’s performance is impaired
o where an employee’s behaviour may cause or has caused embarrassment,
distress or offence to others

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  prohibit the use of any illegal substance or any prescription drugs that have not
been prescribed for the user. It is a criminal offence to be in possession of, use
or distribute illicit substances. Any such instances will be fully investigated and
appropriate action will be taken.

2.2 This policy is limited to those instances of alcohol and/or substance related problems
which affect the health and/or work performance or conduct of sportscotland
employees.

2.3 The policy does not apply to employees who, as a result of excessive indulgence or
misuse prior to or during work, behave in a manner contrary to the normal standard
of safety and conduct required. Such instances will be dealt with in accordance with
the Discipline Policy.

2.4 sportscotland takes no responsibility for any legal action that may arise as a direct
result of an employee exceeding permitted intake levels of alcohol or controlled
substances whilst on sportscotland duty.

2.5 Any employee unable to perform their duties by reason of alcohol and/or substance
abuse, or suspected of being under the influence of either alcohol or controlled
substances will be managed appropriately depending on the circumstances. This
may result in disciplinary action being taken against the employee and the incident
may be reported to the police.

2.6 In adopting this policy it needs to be recognised that there may be occasions when
there will be an impact on colleagues during the course of treatment and
rehabilitation of a fellow employee with an alcohol and/or substance related problem.
The appropriate manager will therefore be required to take suitable measures to
safeguard the interests and welfare of such employees.

2.7 This policy applies to all sportscotland employees.

3.0 Guidelines / Procedures

RELEVANT DEFINITIONS:

Treatment & Referrals

3.1 Hospital treatment (in-patient or out-patient), care and advice by a medical

practitioner, ongoing counselling or attendance at self-help groups. The employee, in
consultation with either their Line Manager or HR Business Partner, is responsible for
the referral procedure to ensure confidentiality is maintained.

3.2 The suspension of any pending disciplinary action and the subsequent referral can
provide the motivation for an employee to resolve the alcohol and/or substance
related work problems, particularly in cases where the move into a problem abuse
pattern has been brought about by a personal life crisis, such as temporary
pressures, worries, bereavement or a financial crisis.

The rejection of a referral or failure to co-operate with an agreed treatment

programme by an employee is taken to mean that the employee is prepared to
accept the disciplinary consequences of their alcohol and/or substance related
actions.

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Education & Training

3.3 In order to alert employees to the risks associated with taking alcohol and/or
substance abuse, and to promote a progressive change of attitude towards use of
alcohol and/or controlled substances, it is intended that a programme of education
will be organised from time to time through the Healthy Working Lives Group.

Self-Referral to Local Agencies

3.4 This is put in place to offer encouragement and assistance to employees who
suspect or know they have an alcohol and/or controlled substance related problem to
allow them to seek help voluntarily from appropriate agencies either directly or
through referral from sportscotland.

Where an employee voluntarily decides to seek help:

 the employee should contact their Line Manager (or HRBP) in the first instance
 their Line Manager (or HRBP) will meet with the employee immediately and
arrange an appointment with an approved assessment agency
 the agency will assess the nature and extent of the problem and arrange, if
indicated, a programme of help and treatment (which may include a medical
examination at the discretion of the medical advisor or at the employee’s request)
 the agency will notify the Line Manager and HRBP if, and only if, absence from
work will be entailed in the course of undergoing prescribed treatment and/or if
the co-operation of the Line Manager is required regarding the employee’s
duties/working conditions and regarding any aspects of continuing support from
sportscotland.

Referral by Management

3.5 When an employee has a work capability problem, e.g. it is suspected or known
during disciplinary procedures that the employee’s misdemeanour is due to an
alcohol and/or substance related problem then referral to a local agency for
assessment and, if necessary, relevant treatment, is the required course of action for
management.

Where referral is required the following procedure will be implemented:

 the Line Manager will meet with the employee endeavouring to rectify a work
performance difficulty (this may be in the presence of a union representative if the
employee so wishes)
 the Line Manager will offer the employee a referral to an assessment agency as
an alternative to taking the indicated disciplinary action
 if the employee rejects the offer of referral then normal disciplinary measures will
ensue
 the Line Manager will arrange a meeting with an appropriate assessment agency
which will report back to the Line Manager indicating the outcome of the initial
assessment and, if relevant, what co-operation is required to facilitate recovery. If,
however, the agency indicates that no alcohol and/or substance related problem
exists then the suspended disciplinary action will be reactivated
 during the course of agreed treatment, should the employee cease to co-operate
in any way with the agency, the suspended disciplinary action would again be
reactivated

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  if the course of agreed treatment is satisfactorily concluded and after a period of
three months there have been no recurrence of alcohol and/or substance related
work problems then no further disciplinary action will be taken
 in the event of alcohol and/or substance related problems recurring either during
the course of the three month waiting period, or at a later date, each case will be
considered on its own merits in conjunction with the treatment agency.

Safeguards

3.6 In all instances covered above, the encouragement or offer of an opportunity to see
and accept help and treatment will be made on the following clear understanding:

 the employee will be granted, if necessary, leave to undergo treatment and such
leave will be treated as sick leave in accordance with sportscotland’s Attendance
Management Policy.
 on the resumption of duties, or on return to work following a period of treatment,
the employee will be permitted to return to the same job unless it is decided that
the effects of the employee’s dependency/misuse problem renders them unfit or
unsuitable to resume the same job or that resumption of the same job would be
inconsistent with the long term resolution of the employee's abuse or addiction.
When the same job is not resumed then consideration will be given to finding
suitable alternative employment
 having accepted help or treatment and resolved the dependency/misuse problem
then the employee’s normal promotional prospects will not be impaired.

Refusal of Help

3.7 Employees who, having an alcohol and/or substance related problem, decline to
accept the offer of referral for assessment and treatment, or who discontinues a
course of treatment before its satisfactory completion (and who continue to put up an
unsatisfactory level of work performance or conduct) may be subject to the normal
and recognised disciplinary procedures.

Relapse

3.8 Following return to employment, after or during treatment, should work performance
again suffer as a result of alcohol and/or substance related problems, each case will
be considered on its merits and, if appropriate, a further opportunity to accept and co-
operate with help and treatment will be offered.

sportscotland is unable to sustain continuous cycles of relapse and associated

treatment and may consider alternative action regardless of whether a course of
treatment has been concluded.

Confidentiality

3.9 The confidential nature of any records on employees with alcohol and/or substance
related problems will be strictly preserved.

Support Agencies

3.10 The following organisations offer support to individuals suffering from alcohol and/or
substance abuse related problems.

sportscotland HR Toolkit – Alcohol & Substance Abuse Policy

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 Alcohol Focus Scotland
www.alcohol-focus-scotland.org.uk

Scottish Drugs Forum

www.sdf.org.uk

Local NHS Boards

www.show.nhs.scot.uk

Responsibilities

3.11 Employees have responsibility to:

 inform their Line Manager in the first instance regarding any prescribed
medication that may affect their ability to perform their role
 professionally represent sportscotland without the influence of alcohol and/or
substances
 access counselling where appropriate.

3.12 Line Managers have the responsibility to:

 recognise any member of their team who appear to suffering from potential
alcohol and/or substance abuse
 provide support to their team members
 refer to HR where appropriate.

3.13 HR are responsible for:

 informing employees of appropriate support available

 provide support and guidance to all employees in relation to this policy

4.0 Compliance
4.1 Employees who do not support this policy and procedure may be subject to
disciplinary action.

4.2 Compliance with this policy will be monitored by the Senior Management Team.

sportscotland HR Toolkit – Alcohol & Substance Abuse Policy

Last Reviewed January 2012 – Version 0.2