Tech Employees Nationwide are Abusing Painkillers

One out of ten working individuals in our country abuse drugs, but did you know that some industries are more prone to abuse than others?

There are many professions that seem prone to addiction. Many service industry jobs are some of the first that come to mind. Most would assume substance abuse happens in blue-collar work environments. However, according to a new study by the National Survey on Drug Use and Health there were many other industries that saw patterns of drug and alcohol abuse.

Specifically the technological industry, with one in five employees abusing opioid based drugs aka painkillers. As we have said many times before, addiction can happen to anyone at anytime, where blue collar employees have high stats of drug abuse, it transcends into the white collared world just as often.

According to our Professionals Resources, we already know that one in ten working individuals are abusing illegal drugs. The statistics become more shocking when breaking down specifically the drugs of abuse. According to this 2018 survey, across all industries, it was found that just over 15% of employees have abused pain relievers, and over 19% specifically in the information technology industry. The painkillers are being taken for non-medical reasoning and this is how we are categorizing the use as abuse of the substance.

It is important to know the risks of all industries and also the factors that lead to individuals falling into the grips of addiction. There are many circumstances that could lead to substance abuse such as stress from the job, hours worked on shift, and physical environment.

If you or someone you know is noticing problematic areas of work that are leading to drug or alcohol abuse, the time to seek help is now.