Pre-employment drug testing is relatively rare. According to a study of Glassdoor posts conducted by American Addiction Centers, “the percentage of jobs requiring pre-employment drug tests is lower than 2%.” Additionally, “New York City had the lowest percentage of jobs in the country requiring a pre-employment drug test” at just 0.46% of potential employers.
When employers do decide to drug test, they generally use one of several methods. These include urine tests, saliva tests, and in some cases, blood tests.
Another method is a hair test—which TikTok user Tara (@t_com12) recently learned can be a pretty daunting experience.
In a video with over 244,000 views, Tara recounts her experience getting the drug test. The first warning sign, she says, came when she told the testing center that she was getting a hair test.
“[The worker] looks at me like, ‘I’m so sorry,’” Tara recalls. “And I go, ‘Yeah, it’s cool. Like, they should pull a couple pieces out and send them out,’ and she goes, ‘No, they use scissors.’”
It was at this point that Tara discovered that a significant chunk of her hair would be removed.
“I literally have a bald little spot in the back of my f*cking dome here, and it feels disgusting,” she saYS following the procedure. “Was it worth it? Is the job paying me that much? No.” She goes on to describe the pay as “decent.”
In the comments section, many users claimed that they would not participate in such a test.
“Baby the way I would’ve walked out that place so quick,” wrote a user.
“I’d never give permission for this to be done no matter what,” added another.
“Paying to have that fixed would be part of their salary negotiations with me,” stated a third.
@t_com12 PSA : When they tell you its a hair drug test for pre employment, you will have a blad spot #nojob #laidoff ♬ original sound – Tara
Tara later posted a follow-up video showing the bald spot. In this video, she notes that the spot is small and is easily covered by the rest of her hair; that said, she continues to reiterate her discomfort about the spot.
In this video, Tara also reveals that the job in question is at a car dealership.
@t_com12 Replying to @Julia heres my little bald spot :) #nojob ♬ original sound – Tara
In the comments section, some users questioned why a car dealership would require such a test, while others said that the amount of hair taken appeared gratuitous.
“For a CAR DEALERSHIP?!?” asked a user.
“So I had literal brain surgery a few months ago and that’s almost the same amount of hair that I lost,” shared a second.
“I’ve had this test a few times. That’s 4x as much as any of my tests,” declared a further TikToker.
The Daily Dot reached out to Tara via Instagram direct message.
