View Full Version : Hair Sample drug testing
orangeskye
July 18th, 2015, 07:19 AM
So i just landed a really great job and part of the final process for being hired was to get a drug screening test done.
I have nothing to hide of course, so i don't mind going in for the test, but when i get there i find out it's a hair sample... which I've never had before.
The tech said that she would make it "inconspicuous" and take it from the back of my head.. which seemed OK at the time.. I assumed she meant near the base of my hair, like she was going to take my whispies.. those would grow back pretty quick..
And then she started snipping.. she snipped the scissors three times, and took a chunk of hair probably an inch wide by 1/8th inch think..
I can feel the stubble poking through when i run my hand over my hair when it's down, and can feel where the empty spot is when my hair's pulled back in a bun :(
My husband even says he can tell where they did it, when my hair is just down and normal..
I'm so sad.. and annoyed that it's going to be a mess for a long time, and stick out of braids and things as it grows out :(
wilderwein
July 18th, 2015, 07:22 AM
What the heeeeck? That should be illegal =|
orangeskye
July 18th, 2015, 07:23 AM
AND as she was doing it she was commenting about how long my hair was, and how shiny.. how i must take care of it.. you know.. so it's like she KNEW it was important to me.. and still just snipped wherever :(
Ares
July 18th, 2015, 07:26 AM
Sorry for your loss. :( :blossom:
DakarNick
July 18th, 2015, 07:34 AM
Yep, unfortunately hair is the best way to get good results and the hair at the scalp is the youngest.
I had the same thing done, as well as 49 other applicants for a railroad job. 48 of us men with short hair but two women had long (relatively) hair and had the same thing done. Only one of the two women got the job.
wilderwein
July 18th, 2015, 07:39 AM
I may overreacting, but I feel like is somehow a body violation.
Also it is really neccesary to cut so much off? It needs to be scalp hair or any body hair works?
Aderyn
July 18th, 2015, 07:42 AM
Is it really necessary to take soo much hair for the testing?
orangeskye
July 18th, 2015, 07:48 AM
I may overreacting, but I feel like is somehow a body violation.
Also it is really neccesary to cut so much off? It needs to be scalp hair or any body hair works?
I feel a bit the same way..
I wasn't given the option of giving other way, and she didn't ask my opinion of where it should be cut from, she did tell me it had to be scalp hair, which makes sense.. but where she cut it is just really obnoxiously not "inconspicuous"
thanks for letting me vent guys! I knew you guys would understand!
wilderwein
July 18th, 2015, 07:50 AM
I feel a bit the same way..
I wasn't given the option of giving other way, and she didn't ask my opinion of where it should be cut from, she did tell me it had to be scalp hair, which makes sense.. but where she cut it is just really obnoxiously not "inconspicuous"
thanks for letting me vent guys! I knew you guys would understand!
Exactly! I feel like there was no option. Also if someone is bald, what they'll do in that case?
Viola88
July 18th, 2015, 07:50 AM
I feel your pain.
I didn't have a drug test but a spot on my part that needed to be biopsied. It was a nickel size chunk the dermatologist removed from my part. Not only did I have a huge, bloody gaping hole in my head but all that part hair was gone :/ No cancer though so that's good but I'm still miffed dealing with the weird Alfafla spot on my scalp, luckily it has grown past the Alfalfa stage.
I hope your hair grows quick so you can't even find the spot where she took the sample from.
lapushka
July 18th, 2015, 07:52 AM
Yeah, well I feel... it has to be done. I'm sorry you lost quite a bit of hair, but... if it's a necessity for a job, you can't complain I feel. :flower:
orangeskye
July 18th, 2015, 07:54 AM
Oh Viola, that's awful :( I'm so glad for you that it's not cancer though, the weirdness is worth the comfort of knowledge.
@wilderwein I've read online since, that they sometimes let bald men shave their arms, underarms or legs for the test. I don't have underarm or leg hair, but had i know i woulda let it grow for a week, and done that instead >< a little gross though.. either way.
wilderwein
July 18th, 2015, 08:08 AM
Oh Viola, that's awful :( I'm so glad for you that it's not cancer though, the weirdness is worth the comfort of knowledge.
@wilderwein I've read online since, that they sometimes let bald men shave their arms, underarms or legs for the test. I don't have underarm or leg hair, but had i know i woulda let it grow for a week, and done that instead >< a little gross though.. either way.
Thats what I had in mind! It's hair! And especially from the armpits area, you can get quite a lot of it!
woodswanderer
July 18th, 2015, 08:47 AM
Wow! I had it in my mind that it would only take one single hair. Guess I'm way off. Sorry to hear about the hair chunk.
missrandie
July 18th, 2015, 08:53 AM
Ice seen this done before. It makes me really mad, but it is a good way to drug test. I just wish she wound have clipped a smaller or more inconspicuous spot. That's not cool.
Lady Mary
July 18th, 2015, 09:06 AM
Wow, a chunk of hair? Seems totally unnecessary. I'm sorry that it went so poorly. I do hope the job ends up being wonderful and your hair grows back quickly.
meteor
July 18th, 2015, 09:42 AM
Big chunks of hair? Why? :confused:
Also, if some people are allowed to give only armpit/leg hair (which doesn't have long anagen phase before it sheds) or hair from short cuts (maybe a couple months old), and you are giving them long hair (years of growth), you are actually providing way longer timeline of info for them to test...
You'd think they would accept fewer hair strands... :rolleyes:
Anyway, I'm really sorry this happened to you! :grouphug: I really hope your hair will grow out fast and you won't even see where the chunks were snipped from. :flower:
Alien Girl
July 19th, 2015, 04:24 AM
Wah I'd be PISSED!
Elly May
July 19th, 2015, 05:01 AM
They did this to my husband at his old job. He had two quite noticeable and rather large bald spots for a while..... Sorry but that is just not okay. I can't believe they need so much!
Freija
July 19th, 2015, 05:10 AM
That is a horrible violation. They need consent for something like that, which means explaining the entire process properly beforehand. I would be furious and miserable if someone hacked into my hair without telling me exactly what they were going to do, for no good reason. I'm very glad that routine drugs testing hasn't become a thing here, so far.
I do wonder - what would they do for people with a religious reason for not cutting their hair? Or a mental health condition that made having their hair cut even more distressing?
wilderwein
July 19th, 2015, 05:34 AM
That is a horrible violation. They need consent for something like that, which means explaining the entire process properly beforehand. I would be furious and miserable if someone hacked into my hair without telling me exactly what they were going to do, for no good reason. I'm very glad that routine drugs testing hasn't become a thing here, so far.
I do wonder - what would they do for people with a religious reason for not cutting their hair? Or a mental health condition that made having their hair cut even more distressing?
I guess a mental health condition would work against their chanches to get the job. But I was wondering the same about religion.
I mean it's ok to want someone completely healthy at some jobs, but what about religion?
yogagirl
July 19th, 2015, 07:32 AM
I'm really sorry :( I've had to have it done about 2 years ago for my (new at the time) job. I remember being able to find the spot for 2 months or so and after that I really couldn't find it anymore. So as unpleasant as it is right now, it shouldn't take too long to disappear. It's not like the short hairs have to catch up to your hemline, they only have to move past the stubble stage and then they will disperse and blend in with the rest of your hair. After that I really wasn't able to find the spot anymore. Fingers crossed that you will have the same experience!
PS, congrats on your new job!!!
ETA: Oh and they only use the few inches closest to the scalp. They cut off and toss the rest, so they don't really get much more hair from women than from men. At least that's what I observed and what she told me during my test.
orangeskye
July 19th, 2015, 01:18 PM
I'm really sorry :( I've had to have it done about 2 years ago for my (new at the time) job. I remember being able to find the spot for 2 months or so and after that I really couldn't find it anymore. So as unpleasant as it is right now, it shouldn't take too long to disappear. It's not like the short hairs have to catch up to your hemline, they only have to move past the stubble stage and then they will disperse and blend in with the rest of your hair. After that I really wasn't able to find the spot anymore. Fingers crossed that you will have the same experience!
PS, congrats on your new job!!!
ETA: Oh and they only use the few inches closest to the scalp. They cut off and toss the rest, so they don't really get much more hair from women than from men. At least that's what I observed and what she told me during my test.
Thanks YogaGirl! the job is definitely worth it, but still annoying!
I hope it disappears in 2 months, right now i feel like i have a big empty spot :(
I made a joke about them getting my whole life story, and the tech said that they mostly just use the roots and not the rest of the length, but she sent the whole length into the lab, either way.
thanks everyone for commiserating with me!
DeadlyUnicorn
July 19th, 2015, 02:28 PM
Wow! I had it in my mind that it would only take one single hair. Guess I'm way off. Sorry to hear about the hair chunk.
Same here... I think I'd have to refuse this type of test. My hair is thin enough as it is. It's totally violating, especially when they could take hair from other places..
Sarahlabyrinth
July 19th, 2015, 03:58 PM
I guess if you didn't let them test your hair then you would lose your chance to get the job.
I used to work in the mining industry and we were breath tested for alcohol every day before starting work. Once a month we were tested for drug use via a urine sample. That was horrible (they had to watch while you provided the sample) but having a chunk of hair cut off would be worse.
My commiserations.
Komao
July 19th, 2015, 04:28 PM
orangeskye, I'm sorry you had to go through that. I understand completely your feelings. I also hope your hair grows quickly & it blends in well and you won't feel the stubble. :blossom:
axonal
July 19th, 2015, 06:24 PM
Orangeskye, that is awful! I'm so sorry!
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