Cannabis Use Driving
Risks on the Roads
Data from the FMCSA Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse shows that drug use among commercial drivers is at its highest level since 2019, with marijuana violations rising by nearly 32% from 2021 to 2022.
1. ScienceDaily
2. SAM
Mixing Cannabis and Driving has Life and Death Implications
Risks are also increasing as deadly automobile accidents involving cannabis and alcohol more than doubled between 2000 to 2018. It’s clear that recent cannabis use and getting behind the wheel can lead to dangerous and damaging consequences whether you’re a transportation professional or the average driver.
“I had to fire my best shift manager. He said he used marijuana last week but there was an incident, and the test was positive. I believe his marijuana use wasn’t the reason for the incident, but I had to follow the policy.”
Transportation Employer
Cannabis Breath Testing for Transportation
How and when to test employees using the HOUND® CANNABIS BREATHALYZER:
Random
The unscheduled testing of employees.
Reasonable Suspicion
Testing an employee when there is evidence or reasonable cause to suspect drug use.
Post-Incident
Testing an employee or team involved in a workplace incident.
Onboarding
Testing all new employees within a predefined period after their date of initial employment.
Continuous
Testing all employees throughout the continuum of employment.
Return-to-Duty
Testing employees who are returning to work after an extended leave or after a previous positive test.
Boost Safety + Retention with a Cannabis Breath Test
Regulated testing has a long history of supporting safety initiatives in transportation by helping to prevent drug and alcohol use on the job. As oral fluid emerges as a viable alternative to urine in FMCSA testing, employers are reminded that other drug test types (breath, urine, and hair) serve different purposes in achieving testing goals.
While regulations exist for testing some employees, transportation employers can consider a cannabis breath test that detects and deters workday use, enhances recruiting and hiring practices, and promotes employee fairness as an additive solution to their regulated testing program.
Deter workday use
Leverage the industry’s shortest detection window to help deter employee use of cannabis on the job or shortly before coming to work.
Improve safety
Mitigate risk, protect policy-abiding employees, and reduce the costs associated with high-risk workday cannabis use.
Enhance candidate + employee fairness
Objective results distinguish between past marijuana use and recent use that correlates more closely to risky behavior within the workday.