Well pretty soon I have an interview with a well-known company. I've passed every single assessment and I'm pretty sure I'm on the last step. But I'm worried that they will be making me take a drug test. I've never had a drug test and I'm not scared of actually passing it. I don't even drink. I'm scared of having to pee in a frekin cup in front of someone. I'm not sure how these things go. What if I have to go with some dude to a urinal? I have nothing to pull out. And what if I ask for a stall? I'm just scared of what could happen. If anyone has ever experienced something like this I'd really love your input.

Oh and will Testosterone be a red flag? I mean I could obviously prove that I have a prescription for it and whatever. But do you think it will be an issue?

Having been drug-tested many times, basically you don't have too much to worry about.

#1, they usually don't force someone to watch you pee. They usually give you a cup, send you into the bathroom, and then they verify it once you've come back to make sure it's the right temperature and everything to verify that it's not a forged sample.

#2, if it's any consolation, drug testing is usually done by 3rd-party companies, so even if someone does insist on coming in, it won't be with the people you'll actually be working with, it will just be with some random lab worker that you'll never see again.

#3, they do not test urine samples for hormones, just for the presence of opiates, marijuana, cocaine, PCP, and various other drug-related substances. These are all specific tests. They're not doing like a doctor's spectral analysis where they'll be able to tell EVERYTHING that's in your body.

#4, they might actually just do a hair follicle test. That's becoming a more popular method of drug-testing recently, because it's impossible to forge samples and can test for the presence of drugs for 90 days back, possibly more. In that test, all they do is snip off 50-70 hairs or so, and you're done.

I've been drug tested twice for my company medicals. Both times I just had to go into a single stall toilet and pee in the cup, they stayed outside the door. All they asked is that I didn't flush or wash my hands until I'd brought it out, and the first time to take my hoodie off and show that my pockets were empty to make sure I wasn't hiding anything which could interfere or swapping it for water or something.

I did have to declare any medication I'd taken at all, but I'm not on T yet, but if I had been I would have declared it anyway.
With the random drugs tests they did (I never had one but I know people who did), they did follow the guy into the toilet but allowed him to use a cubicle, the other time he had one it was a woman so she stayed outside.

If they try and make you stay in the open say you're pee shy (not all that uncommon) and show that you're not hiding anything.

I've only heard of having someone watch you pee if it's a condition of probation or parole.

For all the pre-employment screenings I've had or heard of, this doesn't happen.  If it does, it would raise a red flag to me about the employer.  I would also ask about a false positive potentially showing up on your permanent medical record that would follow you around forever.  This happened to my mother ages ago (probably from a poppy seed bagel) and it almost cost her a job with the federal government.  If she didn't have a PhD in microbiology, she might not have been able to fight it successfully.

I think my form actually asked if I'd eaten poppy seeds recently. It's probably best to avoid them if you know you're going to have a test just in case!

Quote from: Jill F on June 27, 2014, 01:00:48 PM
I've only heard of having someone watch you pee if it's a condition of probation or parole.

This.

With the drug testing I have had done - they have asked me to go to a single stall bathroom. All of my urine drug testing has been done through the hospital though, so I'm not exactly sure your situation.

They wont check for T. Just drugs that disable you from performing well in the workplace. Such as cocaine, pcp, etc...

I've been drug tested in various situations. There was one time, before transition, when a monitor stood facing me while I sat in a stall that had no door. I couldn't pee like that and she eventually left the bathroom. That almost never happens as far as I can tell. You probably would only ever have to be watched if you developed a reputation for using someone else's urine or something, and I don't see how a potential employer would know that kind of thing.

The only time someone is actually in the restroom with you is when you are in the military.

In civilian life they usually do a five point drug test (opiates, THC, narcotics and amphetimenes) and will tell you not to flush the toilet or turn the water on  but you are on your own in the restroom. They will tell you to fill the cup to a certain point, don't wash your hands until you hand them the cup and there will probably be one of thos sticky thermometer on the cup so....

Also make sure you don't drink too much water before. Save up the pee. Too much water and they will call it a diluted sample and make you do it over again. Yes I have had to take random drug tests for work and sometimes quite frequently.

HAha XD Yea no one watches you pee. Don't worry. Only worry if ya taking drugs, you won't have any issue with the peeing in the cup thing. They don't like drag you into a dark room and just put you on the spot and watch you till ya fill the cup. It'll be fine.

And it will most likely come up on their tests that you're on Testosterone. But if they even think it's worth looking into they'll just ask you if ya on it, you'll say yea. That'll be the end of that. You'll be fine.

Quote from: Blue Rabbit on June 27, 2014, 06:03:50 PM
HAha XD Yea no one watches you pee. Don't worry. Only worry if ya taking drugs, you won't have any issue with the peeing in the cup thing. They don't like drag you into a dark room and just put you on the spot and watch you till ya fill the cup. It'll be fine.

And it will most likely come up on their tests that you're on Testosterone. But if they even think it's worth looking into they'll just ask you if ya on it, you'll say yea. That'll be the end of that. You'll be fine.

Testosterone will not come up on a urine test. A blood sample is the only way to test for it.

Quote from: Jill F on June 27, 2014, 01:00:48 PM
I've only heard of having someone watch you pee if it's a condition of probation or parole.

There are a couple of other situations where a drug screen may be directly observed, but they're easy to avoid. Just don't try any funny business like bringing in someone else's clean urine and you should be fine. If you provide a specimen that's out of the temperature range, or visibly adulterated, or of insufficient quantity, then they will ask you to provide another specimen, and that second collection could be under direct observation. Just drink plenty of water and don't try to cheat and you'll be fine Congrats on the job!

I don't know your  exact situation but I do have some experience in this field so ....

Two more things to watch out for, they will notice any blood in urine so make sure there is no chance of that happening and ideally what you want to do is take a mid stream sample, reduces the chances of contamination.