Opinion ID: 2514279
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: What is the nature and extent of Fire and Police Department employees' privacy interest?

Text: Privacy interests deserve varying levels of protection, depending on the precise nature and the extent of the interest. Falcon v. Alaska Public Offices Commission, 570 P.2d 469, 476 (Alaska 1977). Expectations of privacy are not all of the same intensity.... Both subjectively and in society's judgment as to what is reasonable, distinctions may be made in the varying degrees of privacy retained in different places and objects. State v. Myers, 601 P.2d 239, 242 (Alaska 1979). [12] The Alaska Supreme Court has observed that society often tolerates intrusions into an individual's privacy under circumstances similar to those in urinalysis. Luedtke v. Nabors Alaska Drilling, Inc., 768 P.2d 1123, 1135 (Alaska 1989). [13] It concluded that an analysis of the extent of the privacy invasion occasioned by urinalysis should focus on the reason for conducting urinalysis rather than on the conduct of the test. Id. at 1135. The court further quoted with approval from Judge Patrick Higgenbotham's analysis in his concurrence in National Treasury Employees Union v. Von Raab, 808 F.2d 1057 (5th Cir.1987). Judge Higgenbotham observed that the act of urination required by the testing program involves a lack of privacy similar to that experienced by persons using public toilet facilities and that the information disclosed by urinalysis was not all that different from the background checks and release of medical records required for many government jobs. Id. at 1134-35. Likewise, the Alaska Supreme Court has recognized that an individual may have reduced or no expectation of privacy when involved in an extensively regulated industry. Woods & Rohde, Inc. v. State, Dept. of Labor, 565 P.2d 138, 150 (1977) (discussing and interpreting prior holding in Nathanson v. State, 554 P.2d 456 (Alaska 1976)). The United States Supreme Court has specifically held that the privacy expectations of covered employees are diminished by reason of their participation in an industry that is regulated pervasively to ensure safety, a goal dependent, in substantial part, on the health and fitness of covered employees. Skinner v. Railway Labor Executives Association, 489 U.S. 602, 627, 109 S.Ct. 1402, 103 L.Ed.2d 639 (1989). Where employees' successful performance of duties is uniquely dependent on the employees' judgment and dexterity, employees cannot reasonably expect to keep from their employer personal information that bears directly on their fitness. National Treasury Employees Union v. Von Raab, 489 U.S. 656, 672, 109 S.Ct. 1384, 103 L.Ed.2d 685 (1989). The parties do not dispute that employees of both the Police and Fire Departments have a variety of tests, investigations, and regulations as conditions of employment. (i) The Police Department Police Department employees undergo intense scrutiny during the application process. An applicant for a sworn position with the Police Department initially fills out an extensive personal history questionnaire which inquires into the applicant's education, military experience, law enforcement experience, driving history, financial history, criminal history, and alcohol and drug use. Municipality Exhibit I, APD Background Investigator's Manual, Standard Procedures, at 67. An applicant who has illegally used or sold controlled substances will usually be eliminated from consideration as will an applicant who has been convicted of driving while intoxicated in the previous five years. Id. at 13-14. If an applicant is not eliminated from consideration, an extensive background check is conducted. Previous employers, friends, roommates, spouse, and former spouses are asked about the applicant's character and reputation, criminal history, negative or adverse habits, and any other information that might bear on the applicant's suitability. Id. at 17 23. A credit check is also performed. Id. at 24. If still under consideration, the applicant undergoes a psychological exam, a polygraph exam, a physical agility test, a medical exam, and drug screening before a final offer of employment is made. Id. at 25. Even applicants for non-sworn police department positions must undergo an extensive background investigation, a psychological exam (requirement added in 1996), and drug screening test (requirement since 1993). Municipality Exhibit J, Vacant Position Announcements for Police Clerk Register and Police Dispatcher Register; Affidavit of Duane Udland. Once hired, all Police Department employees submit to a biennial physical examination, including a complete urinalysis. Municipality Exhibit K, Agreement By and Between MOA and APDEA at 16 17. APDEA contends that these are voluntary physical exams. It relies on the language in the agreement that the employees are entitled to the physical exam, and Rob Heun's affidavit which states the employees' general understanding that the physical exams are voluntary; some employees do not take them; and no one has been disciplined for not taking them. However, the agreement provides that the Municipality could require an examination: [it is] mandatory that all employees covered by this Agreement shall receive a physical examination as required in this Article. Id. at 18. The examining physician does not report any information from the exam or tests to the Police Department unless the physician finds something that might affect the employee's ability to perform his (sic) duties. Id. at 17. The Police Department also regulates employees' lives both on-duty and off-duty. Employees cannot report to work with the odor of or under the influence of alcohol, may not drink on duty unless required in the performance of official duties, and may not consume intoxicants while in uniform. Municipality Exhibit L, APD Regulations & Procedures Manual §§ 1.02.165, .170, .175. Off-duty, employees may not consume intoxicants to the extent that they become discourteous or engage publicly in conduct that reflects adversely on the Department. Id. § 1.02.200. Employees must notify their supervisor of any prescription or non-prescription medication that might adversely affect their ability to perform their duties. Id. § 1.02.205 (as amended in 1996). Finally, the employees are required to maintain sufficient physical condition to satisfy the requirements of their assignment. Id. § 1.03.210. (ii) Fire Department Fire Department employees are subject to similar intrusions and regulations. Pre-employment physical examinations are required for positions requiring physical fitness. Municipality's Exhibit Q, Vacant Position Announcements. Many of the positions also call for a background check including criminal history, psychological examination, and drug screening. Fire Fighter/EMT and Fire Fighter/Paramedic employees are required to successfully complete the Standard Physical Performance Ability Screen Exercise (SPASE) in order to be certified as a Fire Fighter. They must re-take the SPASE on a periodic basis including after returning to work following an injury or illness. Affidavit of James Nolan at 2 3, ¶ 4; Municipality Exhibit R, AFD Training Division SPASE Requirements. An annual physical examination is also required although the results are released to the Fire Department anonymously only for statistical purposes. Municipality Exhibit N, Health and Physical Fitness Program § 6. Both on-duty and off-duty employee behavior is regulated by the Fire Department as well. Employees are subject to dismissal for diminished capacity to work due to alcohol or drugs or lack of sleep from off-duty activities. Municipality Exhibit N, Rules & Regulations of Conduct § 2.3.1. Regulations forbid intoxicating beverages, marijuana, or controlled substances on any Department premises. Tobacco use is strictly limited. Municipality Exhibit N, Safety & Health Program § 3.1.1(44), (51). Regulations limit facial hair and hair cuts. Safety & Health Program § 4. When an employee may wear a uniform or any insignia of the Department duty is also strictly regulated. Rules & Regulations of Conduct §§ 3.1.1(21), (23); Municipality Exhibit N, Uniform Standards. While on duty, employees are required to avoid all religious or political discussions or subjects of controversy while engaged in Fire Department business; they are forbidden from engaging in any malicious gossip, reporting, or activity; and they are strictly prohibited from engaging in any altercation with another employee. Rules & Regulations of Conduct §§ 3.1.1(26), (27), (28). Employees are subject to dismissal for engaging in behavior offensive to the public such as insulting, yelling at, or otherwise alienating the public, and for making gestures deemed to be obscene or discriminatory. Rules & Regulations of Conduct § 2.3.6. Off-duty, employees are prohibited from engaging in any activity that is inconsistent with or detrimental to their duties or service with the Fire Department. Rules & Regulations of Conduct § 3.1.1(18). The pervasive pre-employment investigations, disclosures, and requirements along with the extension regulation of Police and Fire Department employees, particularly concerning their physical and mental preparedness for their demanding jobs, indicates a diminished expectation of privacy. [14] The policy testing procedures themselves are designed to minimize further intrusiveness. An employee is permitted to remain clothed in his or her usual attire. Personal items are subject to search only if the employee insists on taking them into the rest room for the test. The employee is unaccompanied and unmonitored while actually providing the urine sample. [15] The sample is tested only for the prohibited substances. [16] Information on medication the employee is taking need be provided only after a positive test result, and a positive test result based on a permissible medication will not be reported to the Municipality. Considering the employees' diminished expectation of privacy arising from their employment in a highly regulated, safety-essential field of work, the fairly slight privacy interest in the act of urination required for the testing, and the limited testing done on urine samples, the court finds that the intrusion on Plaintiffs' privacy interests is minimal.