New drug testing publications of assistance to employers

Published on March 16, 2009 by Donna Seale

Lately, I've been getting a number of inquiries about the legalities of drug testing in the workplace. It's a 'hot issue', particularly in the last few years as some key cases have wound their way through the tribunals and courts. Last month, I was also interviewed on CBC radio as a result of a post I did a few months back on the recent adoption of a drug testing policy by the BC construction industry. The interview focused on what the legal concerns were about having employees submit to drug testing.

Recently, two Canadian human rights commissions have released guidelines relating to drug and alcohol testing in the workplace:

the Manitoba Human Rights Commission's publication is called "Drug and Alcohol Testing in the Workplace: When you can test, What you must consider";
the Alberta Human Rights & Citizenship Commission's information sheet is entitled "Drug and Alcohol Dependencies in Alberta Workplaces".

Both are very useful and current resources for employers (and employees or job applicants) to review and understand how Commissions are examining this issue. It is, however, important to remember that the law relating to drug testing, in particular, is in an evolving state.

Categories: Best practices, Discrimination, Drug testing, Items of interest, Reasonable Accommodation