[Brent Dais]

Hi Rodie, I have done some work on this and are using oral saliva for post incident, give me a call

[Brian Ballantyne]

Hi Rodie- give me a call if you like. Just gone through similar and also had experience in other industry. 0273432934

[Robert Parton]

My experience with oral swab testing has been entirely positive.

In a previous role involving high-risk work at remote locations, we had a workforce with a higher likelihood of recreational drug and alcohol use. We introduced oral swab testing as the primary method, with non-negative results triggering further testing. Importantly, post-incident testing was only conducted when there was separate, confirmed reasonable cause—being involved in an incident alone was not considered sufficient.

We implemented random testing, with higher frequency for risk-critical roles. These roles were identified across the full lifecycle—from design through to delivery and maintenance—not just field-based positions. TDDA managed the randomisation process.

All off-tools supervisory roles were trained in both reasonable cause identification and oral swab testing, ensuring coverage across shifts and locations. We had one test machine in the business, and coordinating its availability was the most challenging aspect.

This approach helped workers view both random and reasonable cause testing as fair and respectful of their privacy. The combination of subjective (reasonable cause) and objective (oral swab) assessments focused on likely impairment rather than lifestyle habits. Having familiar colleagues conduct the testing, and allowing workers to handle the swabbing and machine loading themselves, significantly reduced the sense of intrusion—especially compared to supervised urine testing