Lansing Community College
Procedure Details

Procedure Title: Alcohol and Drug Reasonable Suspicion
Procedure #: HR.017
Revision #: 000

Unit Responsible: Labor & Employee Relations Department (Labor Relations)
Individual Responsible: Labor & Employee Relations Director, Labor & Employee Relations Administrator, Labor & Employee Relations Administrator

Effective Date: 09/01/2025
Initial Approval Date: 09/01/2025
Last Review/Update Date: 09/01/2025
Next Review Date: 09/01/2028

*Does this procedure support a Board Policy? Yes
If yes, identify: 4.040 - Drug and Alcohol

Board policies can be found at: LCC Board of Trustees Policy Page

*Does this procedure support HLC criteria and/or Assumed Practices? Yes
If yes, identify: 2A

HLC Criteria can be found at: HLC Accreditation Criteria
HLC Assumed Practices can be found at: HLC Assumed Practices

*Does this procedure support a State or Federal Regulation? Yes
If yes, identify: Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 (Pub. L. 100-690, Title V, Subtitle D; 41 U.S.C. 701 et seq.); 29 CFR Part 98 (Federal Register 54 FR 4946) and (Federal Register 55 FR 21679)

*Note: Standard Operating Procedures should be in furtherance of some LCC policy and/or accreditation criteria, even if the relationship is not direct. Assistance in determining this information can be obtained from the Academic Procedure Advisory Committee (APAC) and/or the Accreditation Liaison Officer.

Alcohol and Drug Reasonable Suspicion, BP 4.040

1. Purpose

To help maintain workplace safety and productivity, which includes arranging to administer a test for drugs or alcohol upon reasonable suspicion.


2. Scope

Applies to all employees, full-time or part-time, temporary or permanent, including executive management, administrators, faculty, academic professionals, support staff, student employees, volunteers, and specialized professionals, whether paid or unpaid.


3. Prerequisites

LCC Labor & Employee Relations will investigate any claims of reasonable suspicion of LCC employees or student employees who may be under the influence of drugs or alcohol while on the job.

Reasonable suspicion refers to a standard used to determine whether there are specific, objective, and articulable facts that suggest an employee, or other individuals as identified above, may be under the influence of drugs or alcohol while on the job. This is not based on a hunch or personal bias. Rather, it depends on observable evidence that can include physical signs of impairment, behavioral changes, and/or reports from credible witnesses.

If you suspect an employee might be under the influence of alcohol or drugs at work, you have a duty to report the reasonable suspicion. LCC will handle such situations with care while observing the legal requirements and continuing to foster a supportive work environment.


4. Responsibilities

  • HR Director of Labor & Employee Relations and staff - Responsible for administering and enforcing the Ethics and Code of Conduct for Employees policy, including drug and alcohol use in the workplace.
  • Labor & Employee Relations and staff – Responsible for receiving and following up on complaints regarding potential drug and/or alcohol use while on the job.


5. Procedure

When a complaint is received:

  1. When a complaint is received, the trained administrator receiving the complaint shall go to the employee’s work area to perform the initial observation and document the employee's potential suspicious behavior on the Reasonable Suspicion Checklist.
  2. If the initial documented observation confirms reasonable suspicion based on the confirmed indicators on the checklist, the initial observer (Administrative Supervisor) shall contact LCC Labor Relations to confirm the initial suspicions.
  3. An observer from Labor Relations will go to the employee’s work area and perform a second reasonable suspicion observation to confirm the initial suspicion.
  4. The observer (Administrative Supervisor) will talk directly with the employee in question to notice any smell of alcohol, eye dilation, slurred speech, or other indicators of being under the influence. Refer to the Reasonable Suspicion Checklist.
  5. If the employee is working around machinery or heavy equipment including vehicle, is in any other type of safety-sensitive job, or is acting in a way that appears to be a safety concern for themselves or others, the employee will be removed from the work area and asked to wait in a conference room or an office.
  6. If both observers witness and document behaviors that create a suspicion, Labor Relations should meet with the employee. Labor Relations will focus on observable conduct and facts.
  7. When reasonable-suspicion testing is warranted, Labor Relations will document the observed behavior.
  8. If the observed behavior is:
    1. Validated:
      1. Labor Relations will make the employee aware of the College’s rule on prohibited use of alcohol or drugs and of being under the suspicion of intoxication while working.
      2. Labor Relations will ask the employee to submit to an alcohol and drug screening (the consent form will be made available during this meeting).
    2. Not Validated:
      1. Labor Relations will document the issue and close out the complaint.
  9. Labor Relations will document the meeting details, noting the date, time, attendees, and key discussion points, including any responses from the employee.
  10. Labor Relations will need to inform the employee of what to expect the following day. In most cases, the employer does not want the employee to return to work until the test results are made available. LCC will not assume the employee is impaired until the test results are confirmed.
  11. Courtesy transportation will be provided by Labor Relations to the testing center and/or home. This maintains the chain of events.

For steps documenting employees under the influence of alcohol or drugs, please see the Alcohol and Drugs Reasonable Suspicion Process steps. This is a very sensitive and necessary part of HR Labor Relations and critical to the safety and welfare of all employees at LCC.

Refusal to Take Test

If the employee refuses to be tested, Labor Relations will refer to the drug and alcohol policy and take corrective action if necessary.

Submit to Test

Courtesy transportation will be provided by Labor Relations to the testing center.

  1. Once results are available, the Labor Relations will contact the employee. When test results are:
    1. Negative:
      1. Labor Relations will work with HR in returning the employee to their job without incident.
      2. Labor Relations will close out the complaint investigation.
    2. Positive:
      1. Labor Relations will follow through with the investigation and corrective action. All situations will be responded to consistently with how the situation dictates in the employee contract and College policy.
      2. The Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is available, and information will be provided to the employee.


6. Reference

LCC Labor & Employee Relations webpage – Reasonable Suspicion Checklist

Labor Relations


7. Definitions

N/A