Cargo Shipowners Must Test 50 Percent Of Crew For Drugs

Cargo shipowners will be required to administer random drug tests to at least 50 percent of their crew in 1999, because too many crewmembers are still testing positive, the Coast Guard said.

The agency announced that 1.59 percent of crewmembers tested positive in random tests in 1997, mostly for marijuana or methamphetamines, down slightly from 1.87 percent who tested positive in 1996.

The positive test rate would have to sink below 1 percent for two consecutive years before shipowners would be allowed to reduce the overall number tests they administer. If the rate falls below 1 percent for two years, only 25 percent of crewmembers will have to be tested, said Lt. Jennifer Williams, project manager, in the Coast Guard's office of investigations and analysis.

She said breakdowns based on vessel type -- cargo, passenger, barge or others -- are not available. Only crewmembers with direct responsibility for safety aboard ship are required to be among the group from which the 50 percent selected for testing would be drawn. For cargo ships, that usually includes the entire crew, she said.

Test rates have remained above the 1 percent threshold since the Coast Guard began collecting statistics in 1994. That year, 1.63 percent of crewmembers tested positive. In 1995, the figure had climbed to 1.75 percent.

"Obviously, the data show that people are still testing positive," she said.

The requirement that 50 percent of eligible crewmembers will have to be subject to random tests in 1999 was published in the Dec. 14 Federal Register.

Regulations require marine employers to establish random drug testing programs for covered crewmembers on all vessels.Employers are required to collect and maintain a record of drug testing program data for each calendar year, and must submit the data to the Coast Guard in an annual report. Contact Lt. Williams, at (202) 267-0686.

Copyright 1998 Journal of Commerce

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