In response to Michigan becoming only the tenth state to legalize recreational use of marijuana, ASE is now sponsoring a class to train supervisors, managers, HR professionals, and others to address reasonable suspicion behavior. Despite marijuana use being legalized in Michigan, employers have control to prohibit an employee from being under the influence of marijuana, just like alcohol, at work.
However, unlike being under the influence of alcohol, testing for being under the influence of marijuana at the time is not possible under standard drug testing today. Therefore, if an employer is concerned about an employee being under the influence of marijuana at work and a safety hazard to the other workers or themselves, it is normally impossible to have them take a drug test for being “high”. Employers that prohibit being under the influence at work must rely on observable behavior to address a worker that should not be working due to be under the influence of marijuana.
Last week ASE hosted its first Substance Abuse Reasonable Suspicion class. This new class was in response to our members requesting resources to better address what many anticipate will become a growing issue. Ms. Lori Barresi of Allied Safety Consultants provided 30 attendees information on the types of drug and alcohol abusers employers may be confronted with; the state and process of today’s drug testing methodology; signs, symptoms, and behaviors of the different types of drug use and abuse; and how employers that observe workers that may be under the influence should document and approach the employee.
During the class Ms. Barresi provided attendees information on the physical and behavioral symptoms persons under the influence of each type of drug may display.
Employers are confronted not only with legal marijuana use but also employees coming to work under the influence of opiates or amphetamines and methamphetamines. To prepare for this, employers should start with reviewing their substance abuse policy and practices and effectively communicate their position and policy on all aspects of substance abuse at their place of work to their employees.
Most ASE members report having a substance abuse policy. In a survey conducted last fall, just after passage of the law legalizing recreational marijuana use in Michigan, ASE employers reported that they were not going to modify their policies and practices. However, many of them were going to review their policies with management employees and workers to ensure everyone understood the policy and what the employer would enforce as a policy should substance abuse be suspected. Only fifteen (15%) of responding employers were going to change their policies in response to this new law.
ASE members interested in the results of this survey should contact ASE Research at (248) 353-4500 and ask for Kris Cifolelli or Michael Burns for a copy of the results.
ASE’s new class on Substance Abuse Reasonable Suspicion can be brought on-site to train supervisors and managers how to directly respond to potential workplace abuse situations with employees to improve safety and avoid wrongful employment actions that might result in legal problems down the road. For more information on how to bring this class to your site, contact Anthony Kaylin.
ASE will be scheduling additional public program Substance Abuse Reasonable Suspicion Training in the future. If you wish to be contacted for upcoming public training programs, you can be put on a registration list by contacting Michael Burns.
Additional ASE Resources
ASE Handbook Development- If you would like your current drug testing or usage policy reviewed, revised, or a new policy created ASE can help. Contact Mike Burns.
ASE Drug Screening - ASE can accommodate all of your drug screening needs, including: pre-employment, random, reasonable suspicion, and post-incident testing. For more information contact Susan Chance.