Discussions

Curious how the new pot legislation is going to affect employers and their drug testing. If it’s not illegal to use, can they fire you for failing drug tests?

it should be treated the same as alcohol. You probably could be fired depending how much is in your system the day of testing and if they have a zero drug use policy in effect. This is going to be a complicated thing to work out for many employers.

I have family members who use it medically to get through their work day. It’s definitely an interesting topic

We have a zero tolerance and understanding they will be doing cheek swab in addition to breath samples and urine samples. Zero tolerance is for impairment but they have a certain level you need to be under for habitual users and this includes those with a medical prescription. The cheek swab will give impaired levels same as breathalyzer does for alcohol. Urine will determine other drugs like cocaine and meth as well as determine residual thc in system. Alcohol clears system quicker so urine is not accurate for long term use. If found any degree of impairment or above long term levels they provide a program to help get clean. Also they are looking at being able to do random testing not just post incident.

Yup. Nothing regarding drug testing will change. It is part of the job requirements at a lot of places. At our work nothing will change. It is still part of our corporate safety policy that no drugs or alcohol is to be used. If an incident happens where drugs are suspect a test can be requested and if failure to comply or fail the test, disciplinary action such as immediate termination can happen.

to buy, that doesn't mean it's legal to use on the job, jeopardizing someone's life or your own.

I have 2 family members that are on it because it allows them to work. Your statement is incorrect. Not everyone who uses marijuana is impaired to the point of putting themselves or others in danger