What should a supervisor do?

If you work for a company like Kimberly-Clark Corporation, the supervisor will be well versed on handling this situation. The supervisor will meet with the employee to review job-related issues, describe concerns about declining job performance, document the poor performance, and lay out a written commitment to improve performance.

The supervisor will be supportive and prepared to deal with denial. Without attempting to diagnose the person's problem, the supervisor can offer compassionate, confidential help in the following manner: "It may be that personal problems are the source of your poor job performance. Therefore, I strongly urge you to contact an employee assistance program (EAP) counselor to discuss this matter confidentially."

The supervisor must be ready to refer to help immediately. If no EAP exists, a list of outside resources should be available. If work performance does not improve, or if use of alcohol or illicit drugs in the workplace is documented, then disciplinary action needs to be taken.

At Kimberly-Clark, a company of 60,000 employees, supervisors and employees are well informed about the company's alcohol/drug policy: "The manufacture, possession, distribution, dispensation, sale or use of alcohol, illicit drugs, and/or other controlled substances by employees on company premises is prohibited, except in the case of individual use of legally obtained prescription drugs or the serving of alcoholic beverages in conjunction with an authorized event on company premises."

More importantly, Kimberly-Clark's policy incorporates a proactive approach to inform employees of the dangers of drug abuse in the workplace and the availability of help in addressing substance abuse problems.

Dr. James Quayle, vice president of Medical Affairs at Kimberly-Clark, said his company has had an alcohol/drug policy for over 25 years that stresses early intervention on addiction problems. "We had a CEO, Darwin Smith, in the early 1980s who believed in education and treatment as ways to deal with addiction," said Quayle. "Under his direction, we had a senior executive who had a substance use problem. That person went through treatment, got into recovery, and went on to have a great career. We've had a strong alcohol/drug policy in place ever since."

"Our program has been and will continue to be focused on education and promotion of the EAP," says Tom Falk, current CEO of Kimberly-Clark. "Education is the single best weapon we have against alcoholism and drug abuse. Making people aware of it, how they can recognize it themselves or in others, and then providing world-class resources for them to get help is the way to go."

The rewards have been great, said Quayle. In the ‘80s, Kimberly-Clark studied 25 employees who got help for their addiction through the company's EAP. The study documented significant decreases in on-the-job accidents and absenteeism. But Kimberly-Clark knows, primarily from experience, that its investment in treating employees yields benefits that far exceed the costs, said Quayle. Valued employees return to the workplace sober and grateful. Improvements in performance, motivation and morale are most apparent, and those translate into many financial pluses, including reductions in accidents, absenteeism, costs to train new employees, employee theft and fraud, and health insurance claims.

According to a Hazelden Foundation study on addiction in the workplace, 89 percent of human resources professionals believe treatment is effective in helping employees fight the disease of addiction. Yet one fourth say there's a belief in their companies that it's easier to terminate an addicted employee than to get him or her into treatment; over half say there's a lack of expertise in their companies to identify addiction.

"The workplace needs to make recovery its business, because it makes good business sense," said Cheryl Lowe, Human Resources manager at Hazelden. "Businesses can't afford to ignore this problem. It's time they learn to recognize addiction, banish its stigma, and encourage treatment for all employees who need it."

Hazelden offers an awareness program called "Making Recovery America's Business" that includes facts on addiction's impact in the workplace, a booklet called "12 Steps Every Company Can Take to Deal With Addicted Employees," and a range of resources to help achieve a drug-free workplace.  To learn more, visit www.hazelden.org/business or call 800-257-7810.

--Published April 5, 2004