NIOSH Responds to the U.S. Drug Overdose Epidemic

Fatalities Involving Substance Use Among US Oil and Gas Extraction Workers Identified Through an Industry Specific Surveillance System (2014-2019)

OBJECTIVE

Characteristics of oil and gas extraction (OGE) work, including long hours, shiftwork, fatigue, physically demanding work, and job insecurity are risk factors for substance use among workers. Limited information exists examining worker fatalities involving substance use among OGE workers.

METHODS

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health's Fatalities in Oil and Gas Extraction database was screened for fatalities involving substance use from 2014 through 2019.

RESULTS

Twenty-six worker deaths were identified as involving substance use. Methamphetamine or amphetamine was the most common substances (61.5%) identified. Other contributing factors were lack of seatbelt use (85.7%), working in high temperatures (19.2%), and workers' first day with the company (11.5%).

CONCLUSIONS

Employer recommendations to mitigate substance use-related risks in OGE workers include training, medical screening, drug testing, and workplace supported recovery programs.

Workplace Context to Prevent Substance Misuse in the United States: Associations Between workplace Policies and Employee Substance Use Disorders

Workplace policies are important because employee rates of alcohol and drug misuse can be associated with work-related risk factors in the United States. To explore the associations, this study analyzed the 2010–2014 National Survey on Drug Use and Health datasets. The overall sample size was 130,726, and the SUD outcome variables included alcohol, marijuana, pain reliever, and illicit drug use disorders. 20% of participants reported no substance use policies in their workplace. Significant associations were identified between all four measured SUD outcome variables, the presence of specific substance use workplace policies, and individual employment sectors. Specifically, comprehensive policies out of six policies were significantly associated with decreased SUDs in nearly every employment sector. The results of this study suggest that workplace substance use policies are important to prevent the development of employee SUDs and comprehensive policies in place can be most effective.

Introduction to the Special Issue: Opioids and the Workplace - Risk Factors and Solutions

The workplace has been a neglected element in the national response to the opioid crisis. This ignores that workplace safety and health and drug policies have become important factors in opioid use disorder among workers. This results from physical or emotional pain related to workplace injuries, illnesses, and stress, and through punitive workplace drug policies, failure to address stigma, and inadequate access to treatment and recovery resources. This comprehensive New Solutions special issue encompasses timely cutting-edge research, commentaries, activism, and calls for action on primary prevention in the workplace and intervention research. It also addresses the convergence of the COVID-19 and the opioid crises, high-risk occupations and industries, health inequalities, employer and union programs, peer advocacy and member assistance programs, worker training, health parity for addiction treatment and recovery services, protection of first responders and site clean-up workers, working conditions of substance use treatment workers, and calls for necessary funding.