Substance abuse and the workplace: a situation analysis

Abstract

Substance abuse among the employed in South Africa has increased in recent years with major economic consequences for employers. Specialist outpatient treatment programmes are available to employers, yet few employees are inducted into these programmes. A situation analysis was conducted to explore possible reasons for this state of affairs. This article provides an overview of workplace-related limiting factors in combating substance abuse and also covers the resources needed to deal with the problem of substance abuse in the workplace. The authors suggest collaboration between employers and outpatient treatment centres as a viable solution