ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the concept of privacy and discusses the practice of workplace drug testing from a rights and duties perspective. It discusses the practice of workplace drug testing from a utilitarian perspective. It identifies ethical issues in the process of employee monitoring by supervisors. In analyzing values, privacy is often linked to freedom or liberty. Information about an applicant's physical condition and health may be relevant to the hiring process, depending on the requirements of the job. A rights and duties analysis would acknowledge that the applicant has a right to privacy, including physical privacy. It would also recognize that the employer has a right to assurance that applicants will be able to perform the duties of a job if they are hired. A much harder question concerning physical privacy is that of drug testing. Admitting to drug usage, or to impairment because of drug usage, clearly portends significant harm to the applicant or employee.
