In November 2023, the White House announced new initiatives to fight the opioid overdose epidemic. The initiatives include resources to equip businesses and state leaders with tools to expand employment opportunities for the tens of millions of Americans struggling with substance use disorder or who are in recovery. One of the resources is grant funding to four states to develop Recovery Ready Workplace programs.

As a state and industry that is unfortunately always ranked near the top for opioid overdoses, being one of four states to participate in this initiative is well received. Given DCA’s years-long commitment to make progress on this issue, I was pleased be asked by the Delaware Behavior Health Consortium (DBHC) to be a member of Delaware’s small team working to develop a Delaware program.

Through the grant funding, I had the opportunity to attend the National Governors Association’s Policy Academy: Overdose Prevention Across the Continuum kick-off meeting recently. Delaware’s team, along with Maryland, Minnesota, and Missouri presented their state’s challenges and resources in addressing the opioid epidemic. We then met with NGA supported consultants to develop a plan for the next 6-12 months regarding the development and implementation of a Recovery Ready Workplace program for Delaware. Maryland is about a year ahead of Delaware on the initiative and the other two states had somewhat different focuses on their effort. Delaware was the only state to have an employer stakeholder voice on their team. Delaware’s team also includes the Delaware Restaurant Association whose industry faces the same challenges as the construction industry.

The core components of a Recovery Ready Workplaces (RRWs) include the following:

Prevention and Risk Reduction: Identifying substance use risk factors in the workplace and taking actions to address them.

Training and Education: Educating all levels of leadership, management, and line staff on substance use disorder treatment, recovery, stigma, organizational policies and employee resources.

Hiring & Employment: Adopting fair chance hiring and employment policies and providing reasonable accommodations to employees in or seeking recovery as warranted.

Treatment and Recovery Support: Ensuring employee access to needed services and supports through employee assistance programs, insurance, and wellness programs.

DCA has been a leader in the construction industry working to move the needle on this challenge through partnerships with the Division of Public Health, Lt. Governor Bethany Hall-Long and others. You may recall, DCA was recognized by the Division of Public Health at our 2022 Annual Dinner for our work on this issue. Jamie Chambers, Director of Member Success, has led toolbox talks on the subject and been featured in DPH videos for DCA’s work. Over the coming months, Delaware’s Recovery Ready Workplace team will meet virtually on a monthly basis along with NGA’s assigned consultant to develop a program. I will work closely with related DCA committees as well as seek the input of our members so Delaware’s team has the necessary understanding of what is the best approach for the construction industry in particular and the business community in general.