Customer service medical/drug test screening

hi Quick question(s) id like to ask any experts:

I have an interview for a customer service assistant at virgin trains.

Very prepared for it but a bit nervous as they run medical and drug tests as part of their process to hire as few weeks before I tried a little THC contents on holiday and I’m not sure if it’s it will still flag up. However they did not say if you need to pass it to be enrolled on.

I don’t do or tried any other drugs they may test for but if it came up would they be reluctant to hire me because of it?

Would like to know anything related to this including the medical procedure would be much appreciated

I think it depends how long ago you consumed it and how much you consumed

MJN11 said:

hi Quick question(s) id like to ask any experts
Tomorrow I have an interview for a customer service assistant at virgin trains.

Very excited for it but a bit nervous as they run medical and drug tests as part of their process to hire as few weeks before I tried a little THC contents on holiday and I’m not sure if it’s it will still flag up. However they did not say if you need to pass it to be enrolled on.

I don’t do or tried any other drugs they may test for but if it came up would they be reluctant to hire me because of it?

Would like to know anything related to this including the medical procedure would be much appreciated

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If you fail the Drugs and Alcohol test then you will not be employed. Simple as that.

It's always best to declare and explain, rather than omit and fail.

There are a lot of factors to consider but anywhere between 3-30 days and it will still be detectable.

A bit daft to be taking drugs if you’ve applied for a job knowing full well there would be drug screening.....
They will certainly terminate your application if you test positive.

I used to be in the police service and from what I remember about cannabis - there's no actual answer to how long it stays in your system. It certainly stays in your system longer than alcohol does!

It entirely depends on how often a person smokes it. If you've been having just a few liveners while on holiday I would probably guess at maybe a fortnight for your blood and urine to be completely pure.

Hair folicals are usually the most sensitive and drug use can be detected on hair months later. It is unlikely they will take a sample of your hair for a routine medical in this case.

I would definitely stay clear of any controlled substances if you are serious about a career in the rail industry. These are safety critical roles and drug use is simply not tolerated.

All the best for your application though.

C J

C J Snarzell said:

I used to be in the police service and from what I remember about cannabis - there's no actual answer to how long it stays in your system. It certainly stays in your system longer than alcohol does!

It entirely depends on how often a person smokes it. If you've been having just a few liveners while on holiday I would probably guess at maybe a fortnight for your blood and urine to be completely pure.

Hair folicals are usually the most sensitive and drug use can be detected on hair months later. It is unlikely they will take a sample of your hair for a routine medical in this case.

I would definitely stay clear of any controlled substances if you are serious about a career in the rail industry. These are safety critical roles and drug use is simply not tolerated.

All the best for your application though.

C J

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Thank you and for your useful advice for what you said above and as stated it is quite unprofessional it was a one off but I will accept responsibility if flagged.

General consensus is anywhere from 3-30 days from a urine test. If it was a one off it will likely be under 10 days, a regular smoker closer to the 30 day mark. Drinking lots of water can help get it out of your system a bit quicker as it will dilute the THC faster. Good luck.

Almost certainly not going to be picked up. But railway work does require you to be sensible about these things, drugs and alcohol policies are there for very real safety reasons. Worth bearing in mind going forward.

Fail the drugs test and you won't be employed. Simple as that. I imagine that no amount of explaining will suffice - whether it was a "one off" or not, they will see you as a drug user and won't want you in a safety critical environment.

Would I fail an alcohol test if I only drank it at special occasions like Christmas birthdays weddings and funerals I also have a drink with a meal when my Dad when he comes down I only drink a couple of bottles of Budweiser I don’t go out and get smashed every Friday or Saturday night for example

Steam Man said:

Would I fail an alcohol test if I only drank it at special occasions like Christmas birthdays weddings and funerals I also have a drink with a meal when my Dad when he comes down I only drink a couple of bottles of Budweiser I don’t go out and get smashed every Friday or Saturday night for example

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The alcohol testing doesn’t work in the same way as the other drugs testing. Typically, the main alcohol test will be a breathalyser (breath alcohol level), much like the roadside test the police use - but with a much, much lower limit on the railway.

This should not detect historic alcohol consumption in terms of weeks/months ago.

It doesn’t usually matter to the railway if you got seriously drunk one night recently (or more...), so long as you report for every shift sober, alert and with no notable alcohol in your system, and so long as you can manage your alcohol intake to occur well outside your working hours.

From a personal perspective, I tend to find that it is easier to cope with the stringent rules and the overall effects of shifts if I don’t drink very much at all. What you suggest sounds like a sensible solution. I also have a personal rule of having a “firebreak”, whereby I am sober and not drinking any more at a given point at least 12 hours before my next shift.

I think even alcohol consumption takes longer to clear than people realise.

If you have had a session of say drinking pints of average strength lager and each pint has 2.5 units in it, you consume six pints - it will take 15 hours for the alcohol to be fully out of your system (1 hour per unit). So if you have your last drink at 11pm around closing time in the pub, your body won't be cleansed until gone 2pm the following day.

I think that's why so many people get nicked for drink driving the morning after! I believe the human body will take up to 14 days afterwards to fully cleanse itself of any toxins. If you do have a medical within a few days of your last drink a blood test may pick up on these toxins but I would think medical people ask you about your alcohol consumption. Having a drink is LEGAL and enjoyable but being in a railway job requires self discipline and any evidence of irresponsible drinking is not going to go down to well so please bare that in mind.

Using cannabis is an offence under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 and is a criminal offence that will get you a record. The use of drugs is frowned upon more than heavy drinking.

I was in the police for 15 years and about ten years ago the force I was in brought in random drug and alcohol testing that was conducted by a private outside company who would select a couple of officers at the start of their tour of duty. One officer on my division, who worked on a different shift and a different station tested positive for traces of cannabis. The officer in question basically lost his job after a misconduct meeting. It was revealed that he had gone to Amsterdam a week before the test and had been using cannabis which is LEGAL in Holland. He had not actually committed any offences and tried to argue this with the Professional Standards Branch who refused to accept his defence. The argument was that he was expected to set an example and his conduct fell below that of what was expected even though he had not broken any laws and didn't get a criminal record.

Again you might be in a similar position where you have used it somewhere where it is LEGAL but a TOC will not employ you anyway. It's worth bearing in mind if you have used cannabis, as like I've said it takes much longer for evidence of the drug to leave your system.

C J

C J Snarzell said:

I think that's why so many people get nicked for drink driving the morning after! I believe the human body will take up to 14 days afterwards to fully cleanse itself of any toxins. If you do have a medical within a few days of your last drink a blood test may pick up on these toxins but I would think medical people ask you about your alcohol consumption. Having a drink is LEGAL and enjoyable but being in a railway job requires self discipline and any evidence of irresponsible drinking is not going to go down to well so please bare that in mind.

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When you do a full railway drugs test, you typically have to declare any drugs - or other potent substances such as energy drinks - which you have taken in the last two weeks. For things like energy drinks, this can be pretty hard to remember, if you’re a regular consumer. Not declaring them can result in a failed test...

I believe some testing organisations also ask for details of any heavy alcohol consumption in the previous two weeks, but this is to ensure the urine test results are interpreted correctly, not to look out for something which will incriminate you. That’s what the breath test is designed to allow.