Date: Fri Sep 10 16:38:17 1999 From: LVNORML420@aol.com Subject: NORML Weekly Press Release To: undisclosed-recipients:;NORML Weekly Press Release
1001 Connecticut Ave., NW Ste. 710 Washington, DC 20036 202-483-8751 (p) 202-483-0057 (f) www.norml.org foundation@norml.org
September 9, 1999
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Government Says 70 Percent Of Drug Users Are Fully Employed
Sept. 9, 1999, Washington, DC: Seventy percent of the nation's drug users are also part of the full-time workforce, according to a report entitled Worker Drug Use and Workplace Policies and Programs: Results from the 1994 and 1997 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA).
The survey, conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, questioned 7,957 full-time emploees aged 18-49 in 1997. The survey estimates 6.3 million full-time employees are current illicit drug users (defined as drug use in the past 30 days), which amounts to less than one out of twelve full-time employees (eight percent), a level which remained constant from the 1994 survey.
"This survey undermines the government's claim that drug users are a drain on society," said Allen St. Pierre, NORML Foundation Executive Director. "By their own data, they demonstrate that most drug users, particularly marijuana smokers, are hard-working and responsible citizens."
Of the population surveyed, the number of people opposing drug testing dropped significantly in most categories.
In 1994, 40.3 percent of current drug users said they were less likely to work for an employer who randomly tested for drug use, as opposed to 28.5 percent in 1997. In 1994, 11.6 percent of non-users were less likely to work for an employer who randomly tested for drug use, as opposed to 6.4 percent in 1997.
For more information, pease contact Allen St. Pierre, NORML Foundation Executive Director at (202) 483-8751. The Survey can be viewed at http://www.samhsa.gov