What Eaps should Know About the Dot & Sap Process: Eaps Make Mistaken Assumptions and Generalizations About Requirements. This Article Examines Four of the "Trouble Spots." (Feature Article) (Employee Assistance Programs ) (Department of Transportation ) (Substance Abuse Professional ‪)‬

Ever since the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) introduced its drug and alcohol testing law for 12 million employees in the transportation industry in 1995, employee assistance providers have played an important role in providing evaluation, referral, and monitoring services for employees of transportation employers. In 49 CFR Part 40, Subpart O, DOT carefully defines the duties and responsibilities of the Substance Abuse Professional (SAP). From the beginning, EAPs have been enthusiastic participants in this fresh, new venture. Before they had a clear understanding of the SAP return-to-duty process, most employee assistance providers assumed that SAP assessments would be business-as-usual. "This is about the workplace, and that's what we do!" they declared. Many EAPs informed their client companies that SAP services would be "rolled into the EAP" at no extra cost. However, EAPs that didn't immediately offer free SAP services were eventually forced to--it was either that, or lose their contracts. A small number of brave EAPs who recognized that SAP was not compatible with EAP services bowed out early.