Canadian Occupational Safety (COS) magazine is the premier workplace health and safety publication in Canada. We cover a wide range of topics ranging from office to heavy industry, and from general safety management to specific workplace hazards.
Issue link: https://digital.thesafetymag.com/i/685950
June/July 2016 11 Get ready for marijuana legalization Employers should proactively communicate expectations, put controls in place I n just about one year, marijuana will be legalized in Canada. When Health Minister Jane Philpott made this announcement on April 20, she promised this change would happen with support from the justice and public safety departments. However, there are no details on what this means and what tools will be made available to employers. So far, there has been no indication this will include explicit legislation allowing employers to carry out post-incident, reasonable cause, random or other testing. The effect of this change is that employers will no longer be chal- lenged just with the legal use of prescribed medical marijuana; they will also be confronted with the myriad of issues associated with legal recreational use — use that may be carried over into workplaces. At your holiday party or summer work picnic, your employees could be get- ting high in the parking lot of your chosen venue — not hiding it, but doing it out in the open because it will be legal to do so. Impaired driv- ing caused by employees drinking alcohol was previously the main con- cern at work-related social functions. Now, driving high has to be on your radar, especially if your employees have driving as one of their regular job duties and your workplace is a safety-sensitive one. But is marijuana impairment for one user the same as another? Not to the same extent as alcohol. Different users have different tolerances. Smok- ing marijuana has a faster impairing effect than drinking alcohol. The effect also dissipates faster. Driving patterns are different, too, often being slower, not faster, and not necessar- ily with drivers veering outside the lines, as is often the case with alco- hol impairment. As not all users are affected in the same way, this makes setting thresholds diffi cult. Testing thresholds in workplaces are typically established on the basis of 4 nano- grams per millilitre. In Washington state, marijuana has been legal for about two-and-a-half years. Since this time, there has been a sharp increase in marijuana involved in impaired-driving cases. Brian Capron, a toxicologist who assesses blood samples from 13,000 drivers per year, says one-third of the impaired drivers in the state of Washington are testing positive for marijuana. In the state of Denver, where the use of the drug has been legal since 2014, there has been a similar experience. The Denver Post reported about one in eight citations issued for DUIs involved sus- pected marijuana use. Given these alarming statistics, police offi cers are being specifi cally trained to identify drug impairment. This is an important step for employ- ers, too. As workplace use is likely to rise as a result of legalization, identi- fying impairment will become that much more important here in Canada. So far, there is no universally accepted work site test for mari- juana like there is the breathalyzer for alcohol testing — but this could soon change. A Vancouver-based company, Cannabix Technologies, is developing a marijuana breathalyzer. The device allows real-time analysis of exhaled breath without any cum- bersome extraction techniques. The device is expected to undergo fi eld testing in the coming months. Identif ying impairment and accessing effective testing presents a challenge for safety professionals and their human resources colleagues in numerous industries, in both safety-sensitive and non-safety-sensi- tive work environments. As such, it will be important for employers to continue to monitor and use (ideally through professional test- ing services) new technologies as they continue to evolve, especially those testing methodologies that can show current impairment and not just use by workers. DOS AND DON'TS There are many things employers need to consider now that mari- juana will be legal in Canada. • Do have a drug and alcohol policy that addresses workplace impairment from prescription, over-the-counter and illegal drugs. • Do ensure the policy is effectively implemented, training is pro- vided to workers and supervisors and the consequences for fail- ing to comply with the policy are understood. • Do accommodate an employee where there is a legitimate underly- ing disability. This could include an independent medical exam, leave of absence or temporary reassignment. • Do train supervisors and workers to identify impairment in their co-workers and give them tools to report concerns to a safe place in the organization where the concern will be acted upon. • Don't get distracted by the source of the impairment, but focus on the issue of impairment. • Don't think that all employees are aware of the dangers of driv- ing high and how being high can negatively affect their ability to do their job safely. In a safety-sensitive workplace, an impaired worker's actions can result in devastating consequences. That was the case with the Metron Construction 2009 Christmas Eve fatalities in Toronto. According to toxicology reports, three of the four deceased workers, including the site supervisor, "had marijuana in their system at a level consistent with having recently ingested the drug" at the time of the incident. Ultimately, marijuana is an impairment-causing substance that employers should proactively address. As more details are released regarding regulation and as the legalization date looms, employers need to get ready to communicate expectations to employ- ees, train them on effects of the drug, explain the hazards marijuana use presents in the workplace and ensure they have suffi cient controls in place to address its potential workplace use. Loretta Bouwmeester is a partner in Mathews Dinsdale & Clark's occupa- tional health and safety and workers' compensation practice in Calgary. She has close to 15 years of experience repre- senting employers in British Columbia, Alberta and the Northwest Territories. She can be reached at (403) 538-5042 or lbouwmeester@mathewsdinsdale.com. LORETTA BOUWMEESTER LEGAL LANDSCAPE LORETTA BOUWMEESTER SAFETY LEADER 2016 OF THE YEAR The nationwide search for the most outstanding safety professional is on! Canadian Occupational Safety is now accepting nominations for the 2016 Safety Leader of the Year. If you know an OHS professional who deserves to be recognized for exceptional leadership, we would like to hear from you. Visit cos-mag.com/safety-leader.html for nomination details. CALL FOR NOMINATIONS Visit cos-mag.com/safety-leader.html for nomination details. NOMINATIONS CLOSE JULY 6 2015 SAFETY LEADER OF THE YEAR Roxanne McKendry Manager of Employee Health and Safety Carewest A THOMSON REUTERS PUBLICATION • DECEMBER/JANUARY 2015 • WWW.COS-MAG.COM COMBUSTIBLE DUST IN RECYCLING • DROPPED OBJECTS PREVENTION • EMPLOYEE RISK TOLERANCE A THOMSON REUTERS PUBLICATION • DECEMBER/JANUARY 2016 • WWW.COS-MAG.COM PM# 40065782 HANDLING SULPHURIC ACID • LONG-HAUL TRUCK DRIVER HEALTH • WHO REALLY IS A 'WORKER'? of the Congratulations to Roxanne McKendry, manager of employee health and safety at Carewest Safety leader Congratulations to Roxanne McKendry, manager of employee health Congratulations to Roxanne McKendry, manager of employee health year A THOMSON REUTERS PUBLICATION • DECEMBER/JANUARY 2016 • WWW.COS-MAG.COM HANDLING SULPHURIC ACID • LONG-HAUL TRUCK DRIVER HEALTH • WHO REALLY IS A 'WORKER'? PM# 40065782 and safety at Carewest Safety Safety leader leader Safety leader Safety manager of employee health year year Congratulations to Roxanne McKendry, year Congratulations to Roxanne McKendry, manager of employee health year manager of employee health PM# 40065782 A THOMSON REUTERS PUBLICATION • DECEMBER 2014/JANUARY 2015 • WWW.COS-MAG.COM HARD HATS AND HEADACHES • SAFELY HANDLING CORROSIVE CHEMICALS • STRUCK-BY ACCIDENTS of the Congratulations to Dave Hagen, vice-president of EHS at Chemco Electrical Contractors Safety Leader Year