The Nation - News from Aug. 1, 1989

A bill to require drug and alcohol testing of all railroad workers who hold safety-sensitive positions was passed by the House. Cleared on a voice vote and sent to the Senate, the measure requires the immediate suspension without pay of any employee who tests positive for drugs or alcohol. It requires pre-employment testing, random testing, testing based on reasonable suspicion of drug use, testing after train accidents as well as part of regular physical examinations. The House passed a similar bill in the last Congress, but it could not reach a compromise with the Senate, which pressed for drug testing of all transportation workers.