Marijuana violations have taken over 10,000 truck drivers off the street this 12 months, including more supply chain disruptions

(Stacker) - Delayed packages, bare grocery store cabinets, and inflated prices have develop into the norm for American consumers over the previous two years. While the COVID-19 pandemic has been the catalyst, there are different challenges inflicting provide chain points, together with an absence of truck drivers to transport 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 as a result of growing old inhabitants and shrinking wages.

In response, the Biden administration vowed in December to get extra truck drivers on the road by boosting recruitment efforts and expediting the issuing of economic licenses. However, that received’t impact one other hurdle: disparate marijuana legal guidelines throughout the U.S. which are contributing to an increase in violations. In 2022, a rising variety of truckers are being taken off the job, which could quickly worsen the already struggling provide chain.

As extra states legalize recreational marijuana—four of which did so in the past 12 months and three extra are expected to by the top of 2022—more truck drivers have tested positive for the substance. As of April 1, 2022, 10,276 commercial vehicle drivers have tested constructive for marijuana use. By the same time in 2021, there had been 7,750 violations. That’s a 32.6% improve year over year.

Truck drivers who journey cross-country face inconsistent state laws as 19 states have legalized recreational marijuana and 37 states allow it for medicinal functions. But even when a driver used marijuana or hemp-based products like CBD while off duty in a state the place these substances are legal, they may nonetheless be faced with a violation due to the Division of Transportation’s (DOT) zero-tolerance policy at the federal degree.

“Whereas states might allow medical use of marijuana, federal legal guidelines and coverage don't acknowledge any legit medical use of marijuana,” a DOT handbook for business vehicle drivers reads. “Even when a state allows the usage of marijuana, DOT laws deal with its use as the identical as the use of any other illicit drug.”

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

Under regulations set forth by the DOT, truck drivers are tested for drug use—together with marijuana—prior to beginning a brand new job. They may also be examined at random, in addition to after accidents. In January 2020, the DOT’s Federal Motor Provider Safety Administration also upped the random drug testing price from 25% of the common number of driver positions to 50%. Truck drivers are primarily screened for drug use through urinalysis, however there at the moment are new saliva tests being proposed as properly.

At worst, if a driver fails just one drug take a look at, that can be grounds for termination below DOT laws. At greatest, they're briefly taken off the street and required to complete an evaluation with a substance misuse professional who determines their rehabilitation process, which can generally take months.

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

In recent times, more states have legalized each recreational and medical marijuana, making it more widely obtainable and used. Nonetheless, marijuana use continues to be prohibited for commercial truck drivers, state legal guidelines and medical prescriptions apart. In keeping with the FMCSA, “a driver could not use marijuana even if [it] is recommended by a licensed medical practitioner.” The DOT has maintained its zero-tolerance stance for marijuana use even as it’s turn into legalized, saying, “Legalization of marijuana use by States and different jurisdictions also has not modified the appliance of U.S. Department of Transportation drug testing rules.”

A commercial driver may use marijuana while off-duty, not driving, and in a state the place marijuana is authorized, however still check positive for the substance for as much as a month later and be taken off the street. The American Habit Centers says for rare marijuana users—which means those that use the substance lower than two instances every week—it might show up in their urine for as much as three days. Someone who makes use of marijuana several times per week can take a look at optimistic for as much as three weeks, and those that use marijuana even more often can “take a look at positive for a month or longer.”

Shortages, manufacturing unit closures, and goods ready to be unloaded at ports are simply a few of the current issues affecting the supply chain throughout America. Trucking transports 72% of merchandise throughout the U.S., in response to a report from the White House, however a growing variety of industrial drivers are sidelined for marijuana use.

The return-to-duty process that commercial automobile drivers must undergo as soon as confronted with a marijuana violation can maintain them from returning to work at all. In response to the FMCSA’s monthly report, 89,650 industrial drivers are at the moment in prohibited status as of April 1, 2022, but 67,368 of them have not begun the RTD process. 

If violations continue on the present rate, the truck driver scarcity will additional disrupt the supply chain, which implies larger prices not just for commodities but the cost of residing at large.

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