Increased need for alcohol testing in Level 1 lockdown

Opinion Piece: Increased need for alcohol testing in Level 1 lockdown 

By Rhys Evans, Managing Director at ALCO-Safe

With a decrease in coronavirus cases, South Africa has recently moved to Alert Level 1 lockdown. Restrictions on the sale and consumption of alcohol have been further relaxed and people can gather in restaurants and bars, subject to a midnight curfew. Now that alcohol is more readily available and more people are returning to work, it has become imperative that we remain vigilant so as to avoid alcohol-related injuries and deaths in the workplace and on public roads.

Strict enforcement on alcohol laws will be necessary

Humans have shown that rules don’t really work unless they’re enforced, which means that high-risk industries are going to have to take a firm approach to ensuring alcohol-free workplaces. Compulsory testing before a shift and when returning from lunch break is an effective means of deterring alcohol consumption during working hours and minimise consumption after hours. Contravention of substance abuse policies need to have strict disciplinary consequences in the workplace. The same applies on public roads: traffic police need to step up their roadblock efforts, testing motorists regularly and prosecuting to the full extent of the law individuals who are found to be driving under the influence.

Under Level 5 lockdown, liquor sales were prohibited in order to conserve hospital capacity by preventing alcohol-related injuries and deaths. Today, under Level 1 lockdown, retail outlets are permitted to sell alcohol during business hours for home consumption from Monday to Friday. Consumption on-site is permissible as long as people adhere to physical distancing rules and the midnight curfew. 

This means the risks of alcohol-related accidents in the workplace are higher as more people return to the workplace, eager to earn a living again. More people going back to work means higher road user numbers and now that gatherings are permitted under certain circumstances, people are going to be tempted to drink and drive. Furthermore, now that alcohol is more readily accessible, people will be more inclined to drink heavily the night before reporting for duty at work. Intoxication and alcohol consumption is illegal in the workplace, and in certain industries like mining where the risk of injury is higher, it is a legal requirement that workers be tested for alcohol before they are permitted entry to the workplace. 

Testing safely in a pandemic

Until a coronavirus vaccine has been developed and is freely available, it will be necessary to conduct alcohol and substance testing with additional safety precautions. The importance of preventing alcohol-related accidents in the workplace and on the road must be balanced by the need to prevent a second wave of infections, as people are now able move freely between home, work and social venues, and even cross provincial borders. Testing safely for alcohol and illegal substances during a pandemic is possible. 

The most effective means of testing for the presence of alcohol is the breathalyser.  In order to protect the test operator from exposure to respiratory droplets from test subjects, testing procedures need to be updated to facilitate physical distancing requirements. By utilising a housing device for the breathalyser device, the operator does not have to come into contact with any of the test subjects. This housing device can be wall-mounted at workplace entrances, or used with a tripod for the purposes of testing motorists in ad-hoc roadblocks. In addition to utilising disposable paper straws for each new test; the operator must wear a face mask, gloves as well as make use of sanitiser. 

Sobering thoughts

According to World Health Organisation data, South Africa ranks sixth out of 189 countries for volume of alcohol consumption among drinkers, with high levels of binge drinking. The severity of South Africa’s problem with alcohol has been exposed by the government and media, highlighting an urgent need for compulsory testing to clamp down on workplace intoxication and drunk driving.

Editorial contacts
ALCO-Safe
Rhys Evans
Managing Director
Tel: 012 343 8114
Email: rhys@alcosafe.co.za

Evolution PR
Reabetswe Madumo
Tel: 011 462 0628
Email: reabetswe@evolutionpr.co.za