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

(Stacker) - Delayed packages, bare grocery retailer cabinets, and inflated costs have develop into the norm for American shoppers over the past two years. While the COVID-19 pandemic has been the catalyst, there are other challenges causing supply chain issues, including an absence of truck drivers to move goods from one place to another. In late 2021, the American Trucking Associations reported that the driver shortage had risen to an all-time high of 80,000, partly due to the growing older inhabitants 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. Nevertheless, that received’t impact one other hurdle: disparate marijuana laws across the U.S. which can be contributing to an increase in violations. In 2022, a rising number of truckers are being taken off the job, which might soon worsen the already struggling supply chain.

As extra states legalize leisure marijuana—four of which did so prior to now year and three extra are anticipated to by the end of 2022—more truck drivers have tested constructive for the substance. As of April 1, 2022, 10,276 business automobile drivers have examined positive for marijuana use. By the identical time in 2021, there had been 7,750 violations. That’s a 32.6% enhance yr over yr.

Truck drivers who journey 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 while off responsibility in a state where 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 degree.

“Whereas states may allow medical use of marijuana, federal laws and coverage do not recognize any official medical use of marijuana,” a DOT handbook for business car drivers reads. “Even when a state allows using marijuana, DOT laws treat its use as the same as using any other illicit drug.”

Stacker checked out what’s causing thousands of truckers to be faraway 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 starting a new job. They can be examined at random, in addition to after accidents. In January 2020, the DOT’s Federal Motor Service Security 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 by way of urinalysis, but there are actually new saliva checks being proposed as well.

At worst, if a driver fails only one drug test, that can be grounds for termination beneath DOT rules. At greatest, they're temporarily taken off the street and required to complete an evaluation with a substance misuse professional who determines their rehabilitation process, which may typically take months.

As of January 2020, employers are also required to checklist 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 check the Clearinghouse to see if a industrial driver had any earlier violations, which might stop them from being hired.

In recent times, extra states have legalized each recreational and medical marijuana, making it more extensively out there and used. Nonetheless, marijuana use continues to be prohibited for industrial truck drivers, state laws and medical prescriptions aside. In keeping with 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 as it’s become legalized, saying, “Legalization of marijuana use by States and different jurisdictions also has not modified the appliance of U.S. Division of Transportation drug testing rules.”

A business driver might use marijuana whereas off-duty, not driving, and in a state where marijuana is authorized, but still take a look at optimistic for the substance for as much as a month later and be taken off the road. The American Habit Centers says for infrequent marijuana customers—meaning those who use the substance lower than two instances every week—it might probably show up in their urine for as much as three days. Somebody who uses marijuana a number of times a week can take a look at optimistic for up to three weeks, and people who use marijuana much more continuously can “take a look at optimistic for a month or longer.”

Shortages, factory closures, and goods ready to be unloaded at ports are just some of the present points affecting the availability chain across America. Trucking transports 72% of products within the U.S., in accordance with a report from the White House, however a rising number of industrial drivers are sidelined for marijuana use.

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

If violations continue at the current fee, the truck driver scarcity will additional disrupt the provision chain, which means higher costs not just for commodities however the cost of dwelling at large.

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