The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued two technical assistance documents on August 5, 2020, addressing accommodation issues under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) for employees who use opioid medications or may be addicted to opioids. They provide employers insight into how the EEOC envisions information exchange and
Articles Discussing Drugs & Alcohol In The Workplace.
EEOC Issues Guidance on Opioid Addiction in Employment
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued two technical assistance documents on August 5, 2020, addressing accommodation issues under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) for employees who use opioid medications or may be addicted to opioids.
New EEOC Guidance Answers Opioid Addiction and Employment Questions
Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, opioid addiction continues to be a public health crisis. It presents many challenges to employers, including compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released two technical guidelines to address concerns about ADA employment provisions and the opioid epidemic. Opioids include prescription drugs such as codeine, morphine, oxycodone (OxyContin, Percodan, Percocet), hydrocodone (Vicodin, Lortab, Lorcet), and meperidine (Demerol), as well as illegal drugs like heroin.
Employer’s Request to Count Employee’s Prescription Medication Sufficient to Support Invasion of Privacy Claim
A federal court in Alabama held that an employer’s request to count an employee’s prescription medication – in connection with a drug test that the employee passed – supported the employee’s claim for invasion of privacy. Effinger v. Birmingham-Jefferson County Transit Authority, Case no. 2:19-cv-00766-KOB (N.D. Al. Jan. 23, 2020).
DEA’s National Drug Threat Assessment Shows Marijuana Potency and Demand Increasing; Black Market Operations Thriving
The U.S. Department of Justice’s Drug Enforcement Administration published its 2019 National Drug Threat Assessment on January 30, 2020. The DEA’s annual report is a comprehensive strategic assessment of the threat posed to the United States by domestic and international drug trafficking and the abuse of drugs. It compiles data from many sources, including drug seizures, laboratory analyses, information on the involvement of organized criminal groups, and survey data provided to DEA by state and local law enforcement agencies across the country.
Marijuana in the Workplace
For many years, employers in the Carolinas have prohibited drugs in the workplace and tested applicants and employees for illegal substances, such as marijuana. Recently, Congress and many states have enacted new laws regarding marijuana, covering everything from cultivation to consumption, for both medical and recreational reasons. Many states have legalized marijuana, while others have taken a more conservative approach and allowed the use of cannabidiol (CBD) products derived from industrial hemp. Employers in the Carolinas must consider how the recent changes in the law will impact them and recognize that more changes are likely—including the possibility that medical marijuana may soon become legal. To learn more about marijuana in the workplace, read this this article in S.C. Lawyer magazine.
Drug and Alcohol Testing Policy Check-Up – Are You Ready for 2020?
2020 is on the horizon, and employers must be ready to comply with many new developments in the world of workplace drug and alcohol testing. Here is a summary of significant laws that will take effect in 2020 (and some that have already taken effect):
Employer Concerns with Employee Substance Abuse and Drug Use: A Q&A with Caroline J. Berdzik of Goldberg Segalla
Caroline J. Berdzik, partner and chair of the firm’s Employment and Labor and Health Care practice groups, was featured in a Q&A with The National Law Review giving insight and ideas on how employers should proceed when an employee demonstrates an indication of substance abuse.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Publishes Standards For Oral Fluid Drug Testing
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) published scientific and technical guidelines for oral fluid drug testing in federal workplace drug testing programs in the Federal Register on October 25, 2019. The Mandatory Guidelines for Federal Workplace Drug Testing Programs Using Oral Fluid (OFMG) allows federal executive branch agencies to collect and test oral fluid specimens, and establishes standards and technical requirements for oral fluid collection devices, including initial and confirmatory oral fluid drug test cut-off concentrations and methods, among other things. The Guidelines will take effect on January 1, 2020.
National Safety Council States That “No Level of Cannabis Use Is Safe Or Acceptable” For Safety-Sensitive Positions
The National Safety Council, a nonprofit organization whose stated mission is to eliminate preventable deaths at work, in homes and communities through leadership, research, education and advocacy, published a Position/Policy Statement on October 21, 2019 addressing cannabis (marijuana) impairment in safety-sensitive positions.
DOT-Regulated Truck Driver’s Claims Dismissed Because He Could Not Prove “Shy Bladder” Condition
An employer lawfully terminated a commercial motor vehicle driver after the driver was unable to provide a sufficient amount of urine during a random drug test and could not prove that he had a medical condition that would have prevented him from providing the specimen. Beller v. Wal-Mart Transp., LLC, No. 17-cv-530, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 52887 (S.D. Ohio Mar. 28, 2019).
FTA and USCG Raise Random Drug Testing Rates to 50% for 2019
The Department of Transportation’s operating agencies have announced their random drug and alcohol testing rates for 2019. The Federal Transit Administration and the United States Coast Guard have raised their random drug testing rates to 50% for 2019. All other random testing rates remain unchanged from 2018.
Voters in Three States Approve Marijuana Laws on Election Day
Three states approved new marijuana laws on Election Day 2018. Voters approved medical marijuana laws in Missouri and Utah, while Michigan voters approved a recreational marijuana law.
Voters in Michigan, Missouri and Utah Expand Access to Marijuana
As has become common in recent years (and despite marijuana’s continued illegality under federal law), citizens in several states voted on marijuana-related measures this election cycle. Advocates in two states—Michigan and North Dakota1—placed initiatives on the ballot to legalize the recreational use of marijuana. Missouri and Utah voters, meanwhile, weighed proposals to allow marijuana for medicinal purposes. While measures succeeded in Michigan, Missouri and Utah, employers should bear in mind that none of these legalization efforts expressly change state employment law.
Voters in Three States Approve Marijuana Laws on Election Day [Missouri, Utah and Michigan]
Three states approved new marijuana laws on Election Day 2018. Voters approved medical marijuana laws in Missouri and Utah, while Michigan voters approved a recreational marijuana law.
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