Other Illicit Drugs Quick Stats
For further data on Other Illicit Drugs please visit NADK.
- Approximately 18% (or 1.8 million) of Australian workers used an illicit drug in 2016.
- About 1 in 10 workers have shown up for work under the influence of drugs at least once in the past year.
- In 2016, about 4% of workers used illicit drugs at work in the past 12 months.
There’s increasing levels of cocaine use. When combined with risky alcohol use this has significant health and safety implications.
Illicit drug use is more common amongst young workers aged 18-29 than workers aged over 30. Approximately 30% of workers aged 18-29 used illicit drugs at least once during 2016.
Commonly used drugs include:
- Cannabis
- Stimulants (cocaine, amphetamine, methamphetamine, ecstasy)
- Opioids.
Male workers are more likely to use illicit drugs than female workers:
- 11% of male workers used illicit drugs in the past month compared to 7% of female workers
- 20% of male workers used illicit drugs in the past year compared to 15% of female workers.
Traditionally the focus has been on young people but the number of young people using illicit drugs has significantly reduced in recent years, while use has increased among mid-aged and older workers putting them at greater risk of workplace accidents / injury.
Cannabis use costs Australian workplaces an estimated $560.2 million. Listen to Professor Ann Roche’s 2SER 107.3 radio interview to find out more about how cannabis use impacts workplace productivity and absenteeism.
