Page 44 - Occupational Health & Safety, March 2019

DRUG TESTING
the testing methodology that has the closest link to recent use of any commercially available drug testing method.
In other states, the laws do not protect medical marijuana use in the language of their statute(s), but their courts have interpreted protection under state disability law. In Massachusetts, the medical marijuana laws are silent on allowing or restricting workplace dis- cipline for medical marijuana use. The state Supreme Court, how- ever, ruled in Barbuto v. Advantage Sales and Marketing, LLC that the state disability discrimination law applies to medical marijuana use. The court held that refusing to hire a medical marijuana pa- tient for a positive marijuana drug test violated the state’s discrimi- nation laws, meaning employers are required to make reasonable accommodations for such patients.
Best Practices for Employers
Because marijuana use inhabits a gray area of the law, it is of ut- most importance that employers communicate their marijuana policies clearly to employees. Employees may believe that if mari- juana is legal in their state, they are free to use it without conse- quence. Employers should take care to inform employees of their workplace policy and to apprise them of the consequences of violating that policy. Employers’ policies should restrict marijuana use to the extent permitted by law. Workplace safety and productiv- ity should be a top priority for employers, and marijuana impair- ment can have an enormous impact. The state of Colorado saw a
huge climb in marijuana-related traffic deaths as well as marijuana- related hospitalizations following recreational marijuana legaliza- tion. Employers should not risk a microcosm of this within their workplaces. In all states and all industries, policies must at the very least prohibit marijuana use in the workplace as well as marijuana impairment during work hours or in the workplace. All employers should continue to test for marijuana, using a testing method such as oral fluid testing. In states where medical marijuana users receive protection from workplace discipline, workplace policies should require employees to verify their medical marijuana authorization to a Medical Review Officer. Employers and managers should be trained to identify marijuana impairment and know what to do when an employee is suspected of impairment on the job. Policies should prohibit any marijuana use by employees in safety-sensitive jobs. In states where medical marijuana is legal, employers should work with HR to develop a policy for employees who request ac- commodation of medical marijuana use for a disability, taking care to comply with state disability discrimination laws.
Jackie Pirone is the Global Marketing Director for OraSure Tech- nologies’ Substance Abuse Testing and Insurance Risk division. Refer- ences for this article’s 6.3 million graphic: Approximate number based on 2016 data for civilian non-institutional population; Quest Diag- nostics Drug Testing Index, Spring 2018, and BLS, The Economics Daily, 2016.
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