Marijuana violations have taken over 10,000 truck drivers off the highway this year, adding more supply chain disruptions

(Stacker) - Delayed packages, naked grocery retailer shelves, and inflated prices have turn out to be the norm for American customers over the previous two years. Whereas the COVID-19 pandemic has been the catalyst, there are different challenges inflicting supply chain points, including an absence of truck drivers to move items from one place to a different. In late 2021, the American Trucking Associations reported that the motive force scarcity had risen to an all-time high of 80,000, partly because of the getting older population and shrinking wages.

In response, the Biden administration vowed in December to get more truck drivers on the road by boosting recruitment efforts and expediting the issuing of economic licenses. Nevertheless, that received’t affect one other hurdle: disparate marijuana legal guidelines across the U.S. that are contributing to a rise in violations. In 2022, a rising variety of truckers are being taken off the job, which may soon worsen the already struggling supply chain.

As extra states legalize leisure marijuana—4 of which did so up to now 12 months and three more are anticipated to by the tip of 2022—extra truck drivers have examined optimistic for the substance. As of April 1, 2022, 10,276 commercial automobile drivers have tested optimistic for marijuana use. By the same time in 2021, there had been 7,750 violations. That’s a 32.6% improve year over 12 months.

Truck drivers who journey cross-country face inconsistent state laws as 19 states have legalized leisure marijuana and 37 states allow it for medicinal purposes. However even if a driver used marijuana or hemp-based products like CBD whereas off responsibility in a state the place those substances are legal, they could still be faced with a violation due to the Division of Transportation’s (DOT) zero-tolerance policy at the federal stage.

“Whereas states could enable medical use of marijuana, federal laws and policy do not acknowledge any respectable medical use of marijuana,” a DOT handbook for commercial vehicle drivers reads. “Even if a state permits the usage of marijuana, DOT laws treat its use as the same as using another illicit drug.”

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

Below regulations set forth by the DOT, truck drivers are examined for drug use—together with marijuana—previous to starting a brand new job. They can be examined at random, in addition to after accidents. In January 2020, the DOT’s Federal Motor Service Safety Administration additionally upped the random drug testing fee from 25% of the typical number of driver positions to 50%. Truck drivers are primarily screened for drug use via urinalysis, however there are now new saliva assessments being proposed as well.

At worst, if a driver fails just one drug test, that can be grounds for termination underneath DOT laws. At greatest, they are briefly taken off the highway and required to complete an evaluation with a substance misuse professional who determines their rehabilitation process, which can sometimes take months.

As of January 2020, employers are also required to record industrial drivers who fail a drug take a look at within the FMCSA’s Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse. These violations remain searchable for 5 years. Potential employers are additionally required to verify the Clearinghouse to see if a industrial driver had any earlier violations, which would stop them from being employed.

In recent times, more states have legalized both leisure and medical marijuana, making it extra extensively out there and used. Nonetheless, marijuana use is still prohibited for commercial truck drivers, state laws and medical prescriptions aside. In response to the FMCSA, “a driver could 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 as it’s turn out to be legalized, saying, “Legalization of marijuana use by States and other jurisdictions also has not modified the application of U.S. Division of Transportation drug testing laws.”

A business driver might use marijuana whereas off-duty, not driving, and in a state the place marijuana is authorized, however nonetheless test positive for the substance for as much as a month later and be taken off the highway. The American Addiction Facilities says for rare marijuana customers—which means those who use the substance less than two times every week—it could possibly show up in their urine for up to three days. Somebody who makes use of marijuana a number of times a week can test constructive for as much as three weeks, and people who use marijuana much more frequently can “test optimistic for a month or longer.”

Shortages, manufacturing unit closures, and items waiting to be unloaded at ports are just some of the present points affecting the availability chain across America. Trucking transports 72% of merchandise within the U.S., according to a report from the White Home, but a growing number of industrial drivers are sidelined for marijuana use.

The return-to-duty course of that industrial car drivers must endure once faced with a marijuana violation can hold them from returning to work in any respect. In keeping with the FMCSA’s month-to-month report, 89,650 business drivers are presently in prohibited status as of April 1, 2022, however 67,368 of them have not begun the RTD process. 

If violations proceed at the current charge, the truck driver shortage will additional disrupt the supply chain, which implies higher costs not just for commodities but the price of dwelling at giant.

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