Marijuana violations have taken over 10,000 truck drivers off the street this yr, including extra provide chain disruptions

(Stacker) - Delayed packages, naked grocery store cabinets, and inflated prices have turn out to be the norm for American customers over the past two years. Whereas the COVID-19 pandemic has been the catalyst, there are other challenges causing provide chain issues, including a scarcity of truck drivers to move items from one place to another. In late 2021, the American Trucking Associations reported that the driving force scarcity had risen to an all-time excessive of 80,000, partly due to the getting old 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. However, that gained’t affect another hurdle: disparate marijuana laws throughout the U.S. which can be contributing to a rise in violations. In 2022, a rising number 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 previously year and three more are expected to by the top of 2022—more truck drivers have examined optimistic for the substance. As of April 1, 2022, 10,276 industrial automobile drivers have tested positive for marijuana use. By the same time in 2021, there had been 7,750 violations. That’s a 32.6% improve year over yr.

Truck drivers who travel cross-country face inconsistent state laws as 19 states have legalized recreational marijuana and 37 states permit it for medicinal purposes. However even when a driver used marijuana or hemp-based products like CBD whereas off duty in a state where those substances are authorized, they may still be faced with a violation due to the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) zero-tolerance coverage at the federal stage.

“Whereas states may permit medical use of marijuana, federal legal guidelines and policy don't recognize any official medical use of marijuana,” a DOT handbook for commercial car drivers reads. “Even when a state allows the use of marijuana, DOT regulations deal with its use as the same as the use of any other illicit drug.”

Stacker looked at what’s inflicting 1000's of truckers to be removed from their jobs, and the looming domino effect of the continued provide chain disruptions.

Below laws set forth by the DOT, truck drivers are tested for drug use—including marijuana—prior to beginning a new job. They may also be examined at random, as well as after accidents. In January 2020, the DOT’s Federal Motor Provider Security Administration additionally upped the random drug testing price from 25% of the common variety of driver positions to 50%. Truck drivers are primarily screened for drug use via urinalysis, but there at the moment are new saliva tests being proposed as well.

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

As of January 2020, employers are additionally required to record business drivers who fail a drug check 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 business driver had any previous violations, which might forestall them from being employed.

In recent years, extra states have legalized both recreational and medical marijuana, making it extra broadly accessible and used. However, marijuana use remains to be prohibited for business truck drivers, state laws and medical prescriptions aside. In keeping with the FMCSA, “a driver might not use marijuana even if [it] is advisable by a licensed medical practitioner.” The DOT has maintained its zero-tolerance stance for marijuana use even because it’s change into legalized, saying, “Legalization of marijuana use by States and other jurisdictions additionally has not modified the applying of U.S. Division of Transportation drug testing regulations.”

A commercial driver may use marijuana whereas off-duty, not driving, and in a state where marijuana is legal, but still take a look at optimistic for the substance for as much as a month later and be taken off the street. The American Dependancy Centers says for rare marijuana users—that means those that use the substance less than two occasions every week—it can present up in their urine for up to three days. Somebody who makes use of marijuana a number of times per week can test constructive for as much as three weeks, and those who use marijuana even more often can “check constructive for a month or longer.”

Shortages, manufacturing unit closures, and goods waiting to be unloaded at ports are simply among the current issues affecting the provision chain across America. Trucking transports 72% of merchandise within the U.S., according to a report from the White House, but a growing variety of commercial drivers are sidelined for marijuana use.

The return-to-duty process that business car drivers should endure once faced with a marijuana violation can maintain them from returning to work at all. In response to the FMCSA’s monthly report, 89,650 commercial drivers are presently in prohibited status as of April 1, 2022, however 67,368 of them haven't begun the RTD course of. 

If violations continue on the current price, the truck driver shortage will additional disrupt the provision chain, which implies larger prices not only for commodities but the cost of dwelling at giant.

Copyright 2022 Stacker by way of Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.