Walking into the depot, you see the collector and the manager tells you the job you are working has been drawn for a random alcohol and drug test. You worry you might come up positive due to taking a family members prescription cough medicine yesterday. What should you do?

• A. Refuse the test.
• B. Take the test.
• C. Seek medical exemption.
• D. Explain later.

Answer: (B)

Cooperating with a required drug and alcohol test is the expected standard in the workplace because safety and policy rely on accurate, timely information. The right move is to take the test now rather than refuse. Refusing can be treated as non-compliance and may lead to disciplinary action or a positive indication of noncooperation, which defeats the purpose of the screening.

If there’s a concern that a medication could affect the result, you should report any legitimately prescribed medicines to the Medical Review Officer (MRO) after the test or as allowed by the program. This lets the MRO verify the prescription and determine whether a legitimate medication explains a positive result. Using someone else’s prescription isn’t appropriate and can create further complications. The goal is to complete the test, then provide documentation so a true medical explanation can be considered if a result is positive.