With the widespread easing of COVID-19 (coronavirus) restrictions, our attorneys have been fielding a number of questions about resuming company holiday parties. Here are some recommendations to enjoy a fun celebration with coworkers without getting the company into trouble: Stay healthy: Tell employees to please stay home if they don’t feel well, so…
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Question: Our company is struggling to find workers and keep operations running efficiently. All employment offers are conditioned on passing a preemployment drug screen and background check. We’ve been allowing new hires to start working before we receive the results from our third-party vendors. We just learned that an employee who has…
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The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently ruled that California employers aren’t required to compensate applicants for time and travel expenses required to undergo mandatory preemployment drug tests. A grocery store with locations in California offered jobs to applicants contingent on a successful background check and drug test. The company paid…
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The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) recently issued a bulletin confirming that using a product containing cannabidiol (CBD) isn’t a valid excuse for testing positive for tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) under DOT rules. Both products are derived from marijuana; THC has psychoactive effects, while CBD doesn’t. The cannabis industry is poorly regulated and as we…
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Question: One of our employees failed a random drug test. He says the positive test occurred because he was prescribed methadone by his doctor to treat his addiction to opiates. Do we have to retain him? We’re concerned about safety. Answer: If your drug testing process had included the services of a Medical…
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The minimum random drug testing rate for commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers subject to federal drug and alcohol testing requirements has increased from 25 percent to 50 percent for calendar year 2020. Covered motor carriers must conduct enough random drug tests during the year to amount to at least 50…
Read More…Marijuana-derived cannabidiol (CBD) products may also contain tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive part of cannabis, causing positive drug tests for workers who use CBD products. The federal government still considers marijuana illegal, but almost every state has legalized cannabis for medical or recreational use, and many cannabis-based products – including CBD products –…
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Question: We require all new hires to pass a pre-employment drug test. Do we have to use the same process we use for our random, reasonable suspicion, and post-accident drug testing and send positive test results to a medical review officer (MRO)? Or, can we simply ask potential new hires for a list of medications they have been prescribed?
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Question: When an employee is selected for a random drug test, we instruct them to report directly to the testing facility, which is only about five minutes away. One employee recently took two hours to get there. He passed the drug test, so can we do anything about his delay in getting to the testing facility?
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The Question: Our employee reported that he was injured on-the-job today, but we don’t yet know the nature of the incident or who (if anyone) was at fault. Our standard procedure is to send him for a drug test immediately. Can we do so?
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