Legislative Council Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1) 55 1 Parliament of South Australia Legislative Council published Question Time Methamphetamine Use in the Workplace Methamphetamine Use in the Workplace The Hon. S.L. GAME Legislative Council Methamphetamine Use in the Workplace The Hon. S.L. GAME (14:49): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before directing a question to the Attorney-General regarding the use of methamphetamines in South Australian workplaces. Leave granted. The Hon. S.L. GAME Legislative Council The Hon. S.L. GAME: A report released by the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission estimated that methamphetamine use in 2013-14 accounted for workplace accidents and absenteeism costing $289 million nationally. That was over 10 years ago, and today it's in the billions. Over $9 billion in lost productivity and accidents is attributed to drugs and alcohol annually in Australia. According to a report released by Business SA, on any given day in South Australia close to 5,000 workers in safety-sensitive industries are turning up to their jobs under the influence of methamphetamines, predominantly ice. Businesses have a duty of care to manage risk in the workplace, and workers on methamphetamines present a serious risk to their own safety and that of their colleagues. This risk may be identified and limited by using workplace drug testing. My question to the Attorney-General is: given the risk that South Australia's current drug epidemic poses to workplace health and safety and productivity, how does the government ensure, or how will the government be ensuring, that employees in government workplaces and on government-funded projects are not using methamphetamines? The Hon. K.J. MAHER Legislative Council Minister for Aboriginal Affairs Attorney-General Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector Special Minister of State The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector, Special Minister of State) (14:50): I thank the honourable member for her question. The honourable member is right: as part of her question she said that workplaces have a positive duty to ensure a safe workplace. That is a fundamental aspect of our work health and safety system right around Australia. Part of the answer to the question was in the question itself, in that those people who conduct a business have that responsibility. I know that in a number of areas, particularly those areas where there are high risks for people who have impaired judgement, drug testing is a feature of those workplaces. That would, I expect, certainly be the case in some areas that may have government contracts that are involved, particularly where very heavy machinery is involved. So, firstly, it is a fundamental duty to provide a safe workplace, and I certainly am aware that, in some areas and industries where there are particularly significant risks, drug testing does occur.