Marijuana

Employers are adjusting to a legal weed world

Most employers that drug test will check for THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, as part of their pre-employment drug screening. Some employers check for marijuana when they conduct “post accident” and “for cause” drug tests. As it becomes legal in more and more places, employers are starting to eliminate marijuana from the list of substances checked in a pre-employment drug test. In fact, some states have passed laws to prevent employers from including THC in their drug testing protocol. Unlike alcohol, there isn’t an accepted test to determine the level of impairment from marijuana. So most employers consider employees who test positive for THC to be impaired, regardless of the level of THC. Disciplinary action varies among employers, but more and more states are limiting an employer’s options in dealing with positive tests for marijuana.

Over the years I have lost some good potential employees due to positive marijuana test results. I remember a technician we were excited about hiring over a decade ago, but he tested positive. He claimed he had never used marijuana for many years, yet he had a high THC level on both of the tests we administered. He couldn’t determine how the THC entered his body. He hadn’t smoked and he did not recall eating anything that would have had marijuana in it. In frustration he sent his wife and 2 children in for drug tests. The whole family tested positive with high levels of THC. After a review of the families activities, it was determined that the shampoo they all used to wash their hair contained THC. Our company would not change the test result policy, so the man was not hired.

I have had some people test positive after 4 weeks of no marijuana use. So if you’re going to have a joint this weekend, make sure you’re not going to be drug tested in the next month.