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

(Stacker) - Delayed packages, naked grocery retailer cabinets, and inflated costs have turn into the norm for American consumers over the past two years. Whereas the COVID-19 pandemic has been the catalyst, there are other challenges inflicting provide chain points, together with a lack of truck drivers to move items from one place to a different. In late 2021, the American Trucking Associations reported that the driving force shortage had risen to an all-time excessive of 80,000, partly because of the ageing population and shrinking wages.

In response, the Biden administration vowed in December to get extra truck drivers on the street by boosting recruitment efforts and expediting the issuing of commercial licenses. Nonetheless, that received’t affect another hurdle: disparate marijuana legal guidelines throughout the U.S. which 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 suffering provide chain.

As more states legalize recreational marijuana—four of which did so previously yr and three extra are expected to by the top of 2022—extra truck drivers have tested optimistic for the substance. As of April 1, 2022, 10,276 industrial car drivers have examined optimistic for marijuana use. By the same time in 2021, there had been 7,750 violations. That’s a 32.6% increase year over year.

Truck drivers who travel cross-country face inconsistent state laws as 19 states have legalized recreational marijuana and 37 states permit it for medicinal functions. However even when a driver used marijuana or hemp-based merchandise like CBD whereas off responsibility in a state where these substances are authorized, they might nonetheless be confronted with a violation because of the Division of Transportation’s (DOT) zero-tolerance policy at the federal level.

“Whereas states may enable medical use of marijuana, federal laws and policy don't recognize any authentic medical use of marijuana,” a DOT handbook for business automobile drivers reads. “Even when a state allows the use of marijuana, DOT laws treat its use as the same as using some other illicit drug.”

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

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

At worst, if a driver fails just one drug take a look at, that can be grounds for termination underneath DOT rules. At finest, they're briefly taken off the highway and required to complete an analysis with a substance misuse skilled who determines their rehabilitation process, which might typically take months.

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

Lately, extra states have legalized each recreational and medical marijuana, making it extra broadly obtainable and used. Nevertheless, marijuana use is still prohibited for business truck drivers, state laws and medical prescriptions aside. According to 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 as it’s turn out to be legalized, saying, “Legalization of marijuana use by States and other jurisdictions additionally has not modified the application of U.S. Department of Transportation drug testing rules.”

A commercial driver might use marijuana while off-duty, not driving, and in a state the place marijuana is authorized, but nonetheless check optimistic for the substance for as much as a month later and be taken off the highway. The American Dependancy Centers says for infrequent marijuana users—that means those who use the substance less than two times per week—it could possibly show up of their urine for as much as three days. Somebody who makes use of marijuana a number of instances a week can test optimistic for as much as three weeks, and people who use marijuana even more incessantly can “test optimistic for a month or longer.”

Shortages, manufacturing facility closures, and items waiting to be unloaded at ports are just among the present issues affecting the supply chain across America. Trucking transports 72% of merchandise inside the U.S., in line with a report from the White Home, but a growing number of business drivers are sidelined for marijuana use.

The return-to-duty process that industrial car drivers should undergo once confronted with a marijuana violation can keep them from returning to work at all. In accordance with the FMCSA’s monthly report, 89,650 industrial drivers are currently in prohibited status as of April 1, 2022, however 67,368 of them haven't begun the RTD process. 

If violations continue at the present charge, the truck driver scarcity will additional disrupt the provision chain, which implies higher prices not just for commodities but the cost of residing at massive.

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