What are Designated Employer Representatives?

Our team at CannAmm has the opportunity to connect with a wide range of individuals in the health and safety industry. Whether this is people in safety roles, donors, or designated employer representatives, our team provides each individual with the detailed service they need.

Have you ever wondered who in your organization attends to the elements that go into occupational testing? These would be your designated employer representatives (DERs). Though this role has the potential to carry many responsibilities, this varies depending on the individual’s clearance level. In every health and safety program, there will be one or more DERs. Overlooking elements of occupational safety in the workplace, these individuals’ responsibilities can include booking, billing, training, and/or enforcing negative and positive test result procedures. This not only helps keep the work environment safe but also keeps a level of confidentiality between the employer and employee.

Organizations select one or more of their employees to be DERs. Depending on the responsibilities assigned to the DER, this individual may be trained to recognize and react to unsafe occurrences in the workplace. This ensures that employees are fit for duty. Training to recognize the use and suspected use of drugs or alcohol is a key asset for this position. A DER with this responsibility is authorized to assess employees in safety-sensitive positions. The outcomes of this assessment are if they are to remain or be removed from duty. Yet, DERs responsibilities don’t end here. Check out below to learn more about the responsibilities that could fall under a DER.

Administration

• Management of random drug and alcohol testing pool.
• Establish which employees need each type of testing. This could include pre-employment testing, post-incident testing, reasonable cause testing, etc.
• Ensure that required follow-up testing is being fulfilled, evaluated, and completed.
• Record keeping for the proper period of time.

Point of Contact

• DERs are the point of contact for our team at CannAmm Occupational Testing Services. The positions that connect with this individual include collection site staff, third-party administrators, Medical Review Officers, Medical Review Officer Administrators, Substance Abuse Professionals, etc.

Compliance Officer

• Ensure that service agents, such as our team at CannAmm, are compliant with requirements as part of 49 CFR Part 40. This is specific to US DOT companies. For NON-DOT companies, compliancy requirements commonly fall under the regulations outlined in organizational Health and Safety programs.
• Complying with organizational health and safety programs. This would include the selection of employees for drug and alcohol testing, advising proper procedures if employees have a non-negative result, confirming that proper follow-up testing practices are being completed, and assigning post-incident testing when necessary.

Instructor

• Provide training to both supervisors and employees on the workplace’s drug and alcohol policy.
• Communicate changes made by either the employer or by legislation to all employees.
• Provide appropriate training to both supervisors and employees about drug and alcohol awareness.

Though not every DER will hold each of the above responsibilities, they may cover one or several of them. This is determined based on the individual’s clearance levels and organizational structure.

Looking to get more information on the positions that go into health and safety programs? Our subject matter experts at CannAmm would be happy to help. Connect with our team today!

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