| dc.description.abstract | Drug abuse is one of the major causes of workplace disruption in transport and hospitality industries. The use of legal and illegal drugs has spread at an unprecedented rate thus reaching every part of the globe. Though international organizations such as ILO, WHO, OSHA, CCHOS, UNDOC, and a local one, NACADA, have been on the forefront in formulating legislation and strategies on occupational health and safety /promotion to curb this menace, the concept has not been equitably recognized As such, employees who abuse drugs including alcohol negatively impacts firms in many ways. There is thus need to establish the influence of drug and substance abuse on transport and hospitality industries.
The study utilized a descriptive research design based on two sampling techniques. Simple random sampling was used to select the specific enterprises as well as inclusion and exclusive criteria for identifying the employees. Purposive sampling was used to choose the Human Resource Managers (fIRMs) in the selected organizations. The sample population for this study was N= 176 respondents (166 employees and 10 HRMs). This was drawn from selected transport and hospitality industries within the Meru municipality.
Data was collected using self-administered questionnaires administered to the employees. A face-to-face, in-depth interview schedule was subjected to the Human. Resource Managers (fIRMs) of the organizations. The data was presented using frequency distribution tables and percentages. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze data both qualitatively and quantitatively. Generally, the study findings showed that the minority of the respondents abuse drugs at workplace as compared to other venues like home and public places. It was further observed that drugs in the hospitality and transport sector are not taken during working hours and therefore they might not influence job performance among the employees in this sector.
However, the high rates of alcohol ingestion especially after working hours, among the majority of the respondents leaves a lot to be desired. Alcohol drinking can threaten public safety, impair job performance, and result in costly medical, social, and other problems affecting employees and employers alike. Because of the undesired potential consequences of drug abuse, the study recommends that employers should do comprehensive screening of job applicants to make sure they are drug free in the interview process so as to minimize drug abuse at work places. In addition, employers should put in place education and counseling programs to educate employees on the dangers of drug abuse since most of them are young people who have a whole life ahead of them. | en_US |
