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

(Stacker) - Delayed packages, naked grocery retailer cabinets, and inflated prices 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 causing supply chain points, together with a lack of truck drivers to transport goods from one place to a different. In late 2021, the American Trucking Associations reported that the driver scarcity had risen to an all-time excessive of 80,000, partly because of the growing older population and shrinking wages.

In response, the Biden administration vowed in December to get extra truck drivers on the highway by boosting recruitment efforts and expediting the issuing of economic licenses. Nonetheless, that received’t have an effect on another hurdle: disparate marijuana legal guidelines across the U.S. which are contributing to a rise in violations. In 2022, a growing number of truckers are being taken off the job, which may soon worsen the already suffering provide chain.

As extra states legalize leisure marijuana—four of which did so up to now 12 months 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 commercial vehicle drivers have tested positive for marijuana use. By the identical time in 2021, there had been 7,750 violations. That’s a 32.6% increase yr over year.

Truck drivers who travel cross-country face inconsistent state regulations 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 products like CBD while off obligation in a state the place these substances are authorized, they could nonetheless be confronted with a violation because of the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) zero-tolerance coverage on the federal degree.

“While states could enable medical use of marijuana, federal legal guidelines and coverage don't recognize any legitimate medical use of marijuana,” a DOT handbook for industrial car drivers reads. “Even when a state allows the usage of marijuana, DOT regulations deal with its use as the same as the usage of another illicit drug.”

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

Under rules set forth by the DOT, truck drivers are examined for drug use—including marijuana—prior to starting a brand new job. They can be tested at random, in addition to after accidents. In January 2020, the DOT’s Federal Motor Service Safety Administration additionally upped the random drug testing price from 25% of the typical number of driver positions to 50%. Truck drivers are primarily screened for drug use through urinalysis, but there are actually new saliva tests being proposed as well.

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

As of January 2020, employers are also required to list industrial drivers who fail a drug take a look at within the FMCSA’s Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse. These violations stay searchable for five years. Potential employers are also required to examine the Clearinghouse to see if a industrial driver had any earlier violations, which might stop them from being employed.

In recent years, more states have legalized both leisure and medical marijuana, making it more widely accessible and used. Nonetheless, marijuana use is still prohibited for commercial truck drivers, state legal guidelines and medical prescriptions aside. According to the FMCSA, “a driver could not use marijuana even if [it] is beneficial by a licensed medical practitioner.” The DOT has maintained its zero-tolerance stance for marijuana use even because it’s become legalized, saying, “Legalization of marijuana use by States and different jurisdictions also has not modified the application of U.S. Department of Transportation drug testing rules.”

A industrial driver might use marijuana whereas off-duty, not driving, and in a state where marijuana is authorized, but still check optimistic for the substance for up to a month later and be taken off the highway. The American Habit Centers says for rare marijuana customers—meaning those that use the substance less than two occasions per week—it may present up of their urine for as much as three days. Somebody who uses marijuana several occasions every week can check constructive for up to three weeks, and those that use marijuana much more often can “check positive for a month or longer.”

Shortages, factory closures, and items waiting to be unloaded at ports are simply a few of the present points affecting the availability chain across America. Trucking transports 72% of merchandise throughout the U.S., according to a report from the White House, but a rising variety of business drivers are sidelined for marijuana use.

The return-to-duty process that business car drivers must bear as soon as faced with a marijuana violation can keep them from returning to work at all. Based on the FMCSA’s month-to-month report, 89,650 commercial drivers are currently in prohibited status as of April 1, 2022, however 67,368 of them haven't begun the RTD course of. 

If violations proceed on the current rate, the truck driver scarcity will further disrupt the provision chain, which suggests larger costs not just for commodities however the cost of living at large.

Copyright 2022 Stacker through Grey Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.