Marijuana violations have taken over 10,000 truck drivers off the street this 12 months, adding extra provide chain disruptions

(Stacker) - Delayed packages, bare grocery retailer cabinets, and inflated prices have develop into the norm for American consumers over the previous two years. While the COVID-19 pandemic has been the catalyst, there are other challenges inflicting supply chain points, including an absence of truck drivers to move items from one place to another. In late 2021, the American Trucking Associations reported that the driver scarcity had risen to an all-time high of 80,000, partly because of the growing older population and shrinking wages.

In response, the Biden administration vowed in December to get more truck drivers on the street by boosting recruitment efforts and expediting the issuing of commercial licenses. Nonetheless, that gained’t affect another hurdle: disparate marijuana legal guidelines throughout the U.S. which can be contributing to a rise in violations. In 2022, a growing variety of truckers are being taken off the job, which could quickly worsen the already suffering provide chain.

As extra states legalize leisure marijuana—four of which did so up to now 12 months and three extra are anticipated to by the end of 2022—more truck drivers have examined optimistic for the substance. As of April 1, 2022, 10,276 commercial vehicle drivers have examined optimistic for marijuana use. By the identical time in 2021, there had been 7,750 violations. That’s a 32.6% increase year over 12 months.

Truck drivers who travel cross-country face inconsistent state regulations as 19 states have legalized recreational marijuana and 37 states allow it for medicinal purposes. However even when a driver used marijuana or hemp-based products like CBD whereas off obligation in a state the place those substances are legal, they might still be confronted with a violation as a result of Division of Transportation’s (DOT) zero-tolerance coverage on the federal level.

“While states might permit medical use of marijuana, federal laws and coverage don't recognize any legitimate medical use of marijuana,” a DOT handbook for industrial automobile drivers reads. “Even if a state permits the usage of marijuana, DOT rules treat its use as the same as the usage of some other illicit drug.”

Stacker looked at what’s inflicting hundreds of truckers to be faraway from their jobs, and the looming domino effect of the continued provide chain disruptions.

Below regulations set forth by the DOT, truck drivers are tested for drug use—including marijuana—previous to starting a new job. They will also be examined at random, as well as after accidents. In January 2020, the DOT’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration also upped the random drug testing charge from 25% of the typical number of driver positions to 50%. Truck drivers are mainly screened for drug use via urinalysis, however there are actually new saliva assessments being proposed as effectively.

At worst, if a driver fails only one drug take a look at, that can be grounds for termination under DOT laws. At best, they are temporarily taken off the highway and required to complete an evaluation with a substance misuse skilled who determines their rehabilitation course of, which may sometimes take months.

As of January 2020, employers are also required to record business drivers who fail a drug take a look at within the FMCSA’s Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse. These violations stay searchable for five years. Potential employers are additionally required to verify the Clearinghouse to see if a industrial driver had any previous violations, which would forestall them from being hired.

In recent years, extra states have legalized both recreational and medical marijuana, making it extra extensively accessible and used. Nevertheless, marijuana use continues to be prohibited for commercial truck drivers, state laws and medical prescriptions apart. According to the FMCSA, “a driver may not use marijuana even if [it] is really useful by a licensed medical practitioner.” The DOT has maintained its zero-tolerance stance for marijuana use even because it’s turn out to be legalized, saying, “Legalization of marijuana use by States and different jurisdictions additionally has not modified the appliance of U.S. Division of Transportation drug testing laws.”

A industrial driver may use marijuana whereas off-duty, not driving, and in a state the place marijuana is legal, but nonetheless check optimistic for the substance for up to a month later and be taken off the street. The American Addiction Facilities says for infrequent marijuana customers—meaning those who use the substance lower than two times per week—it may present up in their urine for up to three days. Somebody who uses marijuana a number of occasions per week can take a look at positive for as much as three weeks, and people who use marijuana much more continuously can “take a look at optimistic for a month or longer.”

Shortages, manufacturing unit closures, and goods waiting to be unloaded at ports are just a few of the present issues affecting the provision chain across America. Trucking transports 72% of products inside the U.S., in accordance with a report from the White House, but a growing variety of industrial drivers are sidelined for marijuana use.

The return-to-duty process that industrial automobile drivers must endure as soon as confronted with a marijuana violation can hold them from returning to work at all. In line with the FMCSA’s month-to-month report, 89,650 business drivers are at the moment in prohibited status as of April 1, 2022, but 67,368 of them haven't begun the RTD course of. 

If violations continue at the current rate, the truck driver shortage will additional disrupt the availability chain, which means larger prices not only for commodities but the cost of dwelling at massive.

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