Members of the weekly business panel are torn between observations that some workplaces have been made unsafe and unpleasant by staff under the influence of drugs while our society as a whole benefits from respecting the privacy of the individual.

Large majorities of the CEO and business leader respondents favour testing in occupations where poor judgment could pose an immediate risk, for example pilots and truckers. Significant numbers favour testing of EMS personnel, police, teachers, and even federal cabinet ministers.

A significant minority would favour holding governments legally liable for harm done by addicted employees in those workplace settings where employers are prohibited from undertaking drug testing. Almost no panelists saw merit in treating addiction as if it were disability.

These are the key findings from this week’s websurvey of business leaders and CEOs conducted for the Financial Post under sponsorship of BDO Dunwoody LLP and the Canadian Chamber of Commerce.

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