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South Hill council adopts employee handbook updates expanding testing for safety-sensitive roles
Summary
Council approved updates to the town's Controlled Substance and Alcohol Testing Policy to include employees in safety-sensitive positions and adopted a new employee referral program, effective Feb. 10, 2026.
At its Feb. 9 meeting the South Hill Town Council approved updates to the town's Employment Policy Handbook to expand the Controlled Substance and Alcohol Testing Policy to include employees in safety‑sensitive positions and to add an Employee Referral Program to support recruitment.
Human Resources Manager Kristine Martin presented the proposed changes, explaining the updates would clarify which positions are safety sensitive, describe the random selection process for testing, and set the timeframe for testing after incidents. Council discussion included requests to review certain policy language with legal counsel and to clarify how employees are selected for random testing.
Vice Mayor Gavin Honeycutt moved to approve the handbook updates; Councilor Ashley Hardee seconded the motion. The council approved the changes unanimously, with an effective date of Feb. 10, 2026.
The town did not publish complete policy text at the Feb. 9 meeting; council directed staff to finalize language, including sections to be reviewed by legal counsel. The record does not specify which positions were labeled safety sensitive or the exact selection algorithm for random testing.
