By Chad Engle, Loss Prevention Manager and Safety Specialist
I want to be certain that any NIRMA member employees that are required to have Department of Transportation (DOT) Reasonable Suspicion Training for Supervisors are aware that NIRMA is presenting this topic, via Zoom, on Monday, July 15th at 1:00 pm central time. This training is available, at no cost, to all NIRMA member employees. The training will last approximately three hours. The training is intended for those that supervise employees that hold a commercial driver’s license (CDL) used for county purposes. The DOT only requires supervisors of CDL holders to attend the training once, but members are encouraged to attend a refresher course when able. NIRMA offers this course two times per year, once in January and once in July. Next year’s sessions are scheduled for Monday, January 6th, 2025, and Monday July 14th, 2025. Both sessions will begin at 1:00 pm central time.
The topics covered in this session consist of an explanation of the reasonable suspicion drug testing protocol, one hour of training to identify alcohol abuse and one hour of training to identify drug use. When the DOT refers to a supervisor, they are not referring to a County Supervisor, rather they are referring to anyone that manages, supervises or oversees an employee with a CDL. The skills garnered through the training will prepare the attendee to recognize an employee that is impaired by drugs or alcohol and pull them from the safety sensitive position of operating a county owned commercial motor vehicle (CMV).
County employees that are responsible for administering the DOT drug and alcohol testing program, often referred to as Designated Employer Representatives (DERs), are also encouraged to attend the training as it will expand their knowledge of the DOT’s drug and alcohol testing requirements. Honestly, any NIRMA member county employee is welcome to attend.
To register for the training please email me at [email protected] the name of the attendee and the email address they wish to have the Zoom invitation sent to. Please let me know if you have any questions.
