Help wanted: but more applicants reportedly test positive for drugs

Photo Illustration by Enoch Wu/Sentinel-Tribune

Wood County has jobs - but so many applicants are testing positive for drugs that some manufacturers are reportedly having difficulty filling the openings.
In fact, Bowling Green economic development officials were told recently that when one employer screened job applicants, seven out of 10 tested positive for drugs.
"There's a lot of frustration out there because they have jobs that are going wanting and they don't know how to fill them," said Sue Clark, executive director of the Bowling Green Community Development Foundation.
Some employers have even expressed relief that random drug testing isn't required for existing workers.
"They have said, 'If we drug tested once they're hired, we would have no workforce,'" Clark said.
The bulk of the positive drug tests show marijuana, she said.
"It's becoming a major issue," or it's showing up more because "there's such a shortage of workers," she said.