Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

So, I'm in the US on an L-1a visa.
I'm moving over to the US payroll, but will remain an employee of the UK company.

The US HR manager wants to submit me for a background check and drug screen. I have absolutely nothing to hide but I'm still reluctant as I obviously want to keep those kind of checks to an minimum unless absolutely required.

Before I go talk to my UK director about it, any advice on where I stand here?

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

This is pretty common practice. I can tell you as a hiring manager, I've had all my recent employees undergo both. For us, it isn't a requirement for transferee's, but is a requirement for new hires.

We also recently started mandating hair samples as a requirement for the drug test, I recently had a prospective employee fail on marijuana from 8 months ago! It lasts a LONG time in hair.

Given it's probably company policy for US employees, you probably don't have an option. I know for us it's mandatory for US, but not UK.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

From personal experience and talking to American coworkers it is very much common practice in professional jobs.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Thanks for the replies.

All our US employees no matter what the position have to have one so I know it is not unusual.
I will likely submit for one...just wanted to take the temperature on here given my unusual situation.

Are there any downsides to me accepting this (other that failing...which I won’t)?

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Very routine. Nothing to be concerned about.

Rene

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

None that I'm aware of.

Rene

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

And to be honest failure to submit may get you on a flight back to the UK.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

This tends to be very industry specific. I've agreed to a background check a couple of times and anyway if you've never lived in the US it's unlikely to show anything much. I've never been asked to do a drug test and I doubt I'd want to work at an employer that required one, unless it was a job where safety could be compromised by drug use. If I were coming over as an intra-company transferee (which I did) I think my default position would be to push back against it as a matter of principle.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Get to keep the job?

Why the reluctance. Pretty standard and you say yourself, ‘all US employees’ take them. You’re working in the US, same rules I would expect...

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

I don’t know...maybe I’m just being a bit stubborn.

However I’m not becoming an employee of the US company, just transferring onto their payroll temporarily while remaining an unpaid employee of the U.K. company.
So either I’m being asked to take a drug screening without due cause by the U.K. company, or I’m being asked to submit to a drug screening by a foreign company I’m not employed by. Both of which sits a bit uneasy with me.

Again though...maybe it’s just my stubborn streak..........

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

I'm going to be honest - from my perspective as a hiring manager, given how routine this is in the US, failure to submit or even hesitance to submit would give me cause for concern. I had a previous prospective employee claim he couldn't grow hair therefore couldn't submit, gave every excuse under the sun. Once HR informed him he had to make a submission or we'd retract his offer he reluctantly did and promptly failed.

If I were you I'd agree - not worth starting off US employment for a company that has paid for your move on a sour note because you're being stubborn. Now if you've a legitimate cause for concern (like you'll fail..) that's another discussion.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

I get the reluctance. You should know, however, in the US that the typical result of refusal is an automatic fail.

If you are on prescription drugs, you should do some research. But you probably don’t have much choice.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Defo nothing to worry about.
I’ve got a GC physical in the next few days so if I’m worried about failing then I’ve got bigger problems than keeping a job!!! :D

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Yeah, I know I’ll go with all your collective good advice.

Or in the words of my girlfriend “stop being a dick!”

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Why the reluctance?

Assuming that the tests are being applied to all employees and there is no objective reason (safety etc) why they could be considered necessary, how about "because it's none of the employer's damn business"?

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Well, you and I live in a state and work in an industry that has rather more commonsense on this.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

I'm curious, what is the point/benefit of this? So what if they smoked 8 months ago? How will that effect them in any way in their day to day job? Whats to stop them just shaving all their hair off?

Here in the UK my company does drug tests using urine. Which checks for metabolites still in the body which shows recent use which could impact the day to day job as it is safety critical.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Lol, if you wanted to work for harrods store in london when mohammed fayad ran it, you had to have aids and tb tests, they said it was for food handling! But applied it universally.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

It's not just about the drugs, it goes to your overall credibility as a candidate.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Having discussed this topic a fair bit with some US coworkers i've never heard of hair tests for this purpose. So I guess it varies quite a bit from city to city, profession to profession.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

In financial and security establishments, taking illegal drugs leaves one open to blackmail and shows a willingness to be illegal [theres a word for that] which would bar you immediately from sensitive positions and get you a black mark if you were being considered for other posts.

I couldnt have worked on nuclear sites or on military or general aviation software if i had...

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

We used to only mandate this for employees working on government contracts, changed that recently to be all new employee's.

Whilst I personally couldn't care less if the individual smoked 8 months ago, policy is policy and it is argued it goes to credibility.

Equally - if you have no hair out of anything other than a medical reason, the companies response (I sh*t you not) is to grow out a beard, leg or head hair sufficient to give a sample. Or supply a medical note that you physically can't, else we rescind the offer or employment.

I should add, whilst I'm in software development, the overall company is in heavy equipment, so I can see the logic.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

How does smoking a joint affect one's overall credibility as a candidate?

I would have thought alcoholism affected one's credibility rather more and unless they have some drink-related offence show up on a background check, these employers are typically silent on that.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Those that engage in willful illegal activities are perceived, rightly or wrongly, to be less reliable and more of a risk in terms of attendance in my experience.

Ultimately the applicant is asking for a job, they can find someone else if you don't want to comply with their requirements.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Marijuana is not illegal in several states and not illegal in a bunch more for medicinal reasons. The latter is the irony in all this. Of course, I do understand that at the federal level it is still considered illegal everywhere.

And, again, the statistics clearly show alcoholism is a far bigger risk in terms of attendance (and medical costs etc).

That is certainly true, although I suspect we are moving towards at least certain states making such drug tests for marijuana illegal.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

What if the subject took in the marijuana outside of work in a state where it was legal? Would you not employ them on federal law grounds? All a but pathetic IMO

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

It's not even all about the legality - people who takes drugs are a risk. To the company, to their colleagues.

If a company does not wish to employ a drug user, they have that right.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

:rofl: I forget where I am sometimes!

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Coffee? Beer? Wine?

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Precisely.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

As a non-alcohol drinker, I wouldn't be adverse to checking for that if a company deemed it better for them.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

This is comedy gold

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

"According to the 2015 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), 86.4 percent of people ages 18 or older reported that they drank alcohol at some point in their lifetime; 70.1 percent reported that they drank in the past year; 56.0 percent reported that they drank in the past month.1"

https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/alcohol-he...and-statistics

You're going to have a mighty small job force then. Or perhaps it's time for prohibition - that worked out really well last time around.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Really fun work parties, also.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

I asked this - response was the same. Drugs considered illegal at the federal level, regardless of where they were consumed are considered a fail.

I honestly couldn't care less about marijuana, but the policy is policy. I should add they do ask you to do a breath test too, to check your alcohol levels.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

So you can be addicted to opioids and pass but smoke an occasional joint and fail... pure stupidity.

Which tells you basically nothing given how relatively soon alcohol dissipates in the body.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Dont be a dxck, they can measure historical opioid use from your hair. Its also not that they are discriminating against you because you use recreational - dodgy legally - drugs, its because you become exposed by illegal activity to potential blackmail, and because you expose yourself as someone who doesnt mind breaking some law or another.

If you want to work for ‘the govt man’ dont break his rules.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Many opioids that are used recreationally are actually legal drugs.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Probably has to be done for insurance purposes. Don't sweat it.

Re: Drug Screen and Background Check - L1 visa
 

Just be sure to ask them for their GDPR policies on how they will handle the result. We IA professionals have Xmas bonuses to make..............