TTC's Random Testing Program Wins Public Sector Safety Award

The Toronto Transit Commission's commitment to public safety has been awarded the Ontario Safety League's Award of Excellence for Public Safety for its recently implemented random drug and alcohol testing program for employees in safety-sensitive positions — about 10,000 TTC employees, including managers and executives.

Presented to the TTC's Chief Safety Officer, John O'Grady, on Sept. 21 by Ontario Minister of Transportation Steven Del Duca, the award is given annually to highlight and support a public sector initiative that enhances public safety.

This year, the OSL recognized the TTC for its courage and leadership in introducing its fitness for duty policy and random testing component for the potential to inspire other transit agencies to do likewise.

"The TTC is proud to be a leader in this critically important area of public safety," said TTC CEO Andy Byford. "I remain hopeful that random testing for all safety sensitive positions in the transit and transportation industries will soon be the norm and not the exception. I want to recognize and thank all those who worked to make the TTC the first public transit agency in Canada to adopt random testing."

Implemented on May 8 this year, the TTC's random testing program is a new component of the TTC's existing Fitness for Duty policy that has been in place since 2010. Random drug and alcohol testing is an important part of the TTC's comprehensive commitment to ensuring the safety of employees, customers and the public.

Since the introduction of the random testing program, more than 1,000 employees have been tested, with 21 employees testing positive for drugs or alcohol. Random testing for drugs and alcohol looks for impairment at the time of the test, using an oral fluid sample for drugs and a breathalyzer for alcohol.