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

(Stacker) - Delayed packages, bare grocery retailer cabinets, and inflated prices have become the norm for American customers over the past two years. Whereas the COVID-19 pandemic has been the catalyst, there are different challenges inflicting supply chain issues, including a scarcity of truck drivers to transport items from one place to a different. In late 2021, the American Trucking Associations reported that the driving force scarcity had risen to an all-time excessive of 80,000, partly because of the getting old 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 business licenses. However, that won’t affect one other hurdle: disparate marijuana laws throughout the U.S. which might be contributing to an increase in violations. In 2022, a growing variety of truckers are being taken off the job, which might quickly worsen the already struggling provide chain.

As more states legalize recreational marijuana—4 of which did so in the past yr and three extra are expected to by the tip of 2022—more truck drivers have examined constructive for the substance. As of April 1, 2022, 10,276 business car drivers have examined constructive for marijuana use. By the same time in 2021, there had been 7,750 violations. That’s a 32.6% increase year over 12 months.

Truck drivers who journey cross-country face inconsistent state regulations as 19 states have legalized leisure marijuana and 37 states permit it for medicinal purposes. However even if a driver used marijuana or hemp-based products like CBD whereas off responsibility in a state where these substances are authorized, they could nonetheless be faced with a violation because of the Division of Transportation’s (DOT) zero-tolerance coverage at the federal degree.

“Whereas states may permit medical use of marijuana, federal laws and coverage do not acknowledge any legitimate medical use of marijuana,” a DOT handbook for business vehicle drivers reads. “Even if a state allows the use of marijuana, DOT rules deal with its use as the identical as the usage of every other illicit drug.”

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

Under laws set forth by the DOT, truck drivers are tested for drug use—including marijuana—prior to beginning a brand new job. They will also be tested at random, in addition to after accidents. In January 2020, the DOT’s Federal Motor Service Security Administration also upped the random drug testing price from 25% of the common variety of driver positions to 50%. Truck drivers are mainly screened for drug use by way of urinalysis, but there at the moment are new saliva checks being proposed as properly.

At worst, if a driver fails just one drug test, that may be grounds for termination underneath DOT regulations. At greatest, they are quickly taken off the street and required to complete an evaluation with a substance misuse professional who determines their rehabilitation course of, which might generally take months.

As of January 2020, employers are additionally required to listing industrial 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 check the Clearinghouse to see if a business driver had any previous violations, which might forestall them from being hired.

In recent times, more states have legalized each recreational and medical marijuana, making it extra widely accessible and used. However, marijuana use continues to be prohibited for industrial truck drivers, state legal guidelines and medical prescriptions apart. According to the FMCSA, “a driver may not use marijuana even if [it] is really helpful by a licensed medical practitioner.” The DOT has maintained its zero-tolerance stance for marijuana use even as it’s grow 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 commercial driver could use marijuana while off-duty, not driving, and in a state where marijuana is legal, however still test constructive for the substance for as much as a month later and be taken off the highway. The American Dependancy Centers says for rare marijuana users—that means those who use the substance lower than two instances every week—it will probably present up of their urine for up to three days. Somebody who uses marijuana several times a week can check positive for as much as three weeks, and people who use marijuana even more steadily can “test positive for a month or longer.”

Shortages, factory closures, and goods waiting to be unloaded at ports are simply a few of the present issues affecting the provision chain throughout America. Trucking transports 72% of products inside the U.S., in accordance with a report from the White House, however a growing number of commercial drivers are sidelined for marijuana use.

The return-to-duty process that industrial automobile drivers must bear once confronted with a marijuana violation can preserve them from returning to work at all. In accordance with the FMCSA’s monthly report, 89,650 industrial drivers are presently in prohibited standing 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 scarcity will further disrupt the supply chain, which means greater prices not just for commodities however the cost of dwelling at large.

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