Legal Marijuana & Drug Testing

How many states have legalized marijuana? Most of them, right? And even if a state has not legalized marijuana, do they enforce marijuana laws? And in those states, do employers conduct drug testing?

The legalization of marijuana has not been kind to the drug testing industry in the last several years, and that trend is ongoing. Nearly 17% of respondents in Current Consulting Group’s 26^th Annual Drug Testing Industry Survey said the legalization of marijuana is having a negative effect on drug testing sales while about 39% said it is having an effect on sales, but it is minimal. Conversely, 32% said legal marijuana has had no effect on sales.

When asked, “What percentage of your clients have dropped marijuana from their drug test panel in the last 12 months?” 22.4% said that none of their clients have dropped marijuana. However, 35% said between 1% and 5% of their clients have stopped testing for marijuana, 26% said between 6% and 10% have, and 17% said more than 10%.

When asked, “Why have clients dropped marijuana from their drug-test panel?” the responses were as follows:

They believe it makes it harder to hire people: 61.83%
To avoid the risk of a legal challenge from an applicant or employee: 43.57%
It’s not legal to test for marijuana in their state(s): 33.61%
They don’t want to know who uses marijuana: 12.03%
They don’t believe it is right to test for marijuana: 8.30%
They don’t believe testing for marijuana makes the workplace safer: 7.88%
They probably use marijuana and don’t want to be hypocrites: 6.22%
We discourage our clients from testing for marijuana: 1.66%
Don’t know: 9.54%

Most survey participants believe this trend of dropping marijuana from drug tests will continue, as 70% said yes versus 30% who said no. More than 43% said they do not believe companies that drop marijuana will ever reinstate testing for marijuana and 23% were not sure. That said, 17% believe most, if not all, of these companies will reinstate testing for marijuana and another 16.7% said some but not many will reinstate it.

The negative consequences of not testing for marijuana are clear in numerous reports, including the 2024 Quest Diagnostics Drug Testing Index[i] and a 2024 survey of employed marijuana users conducted by Hound Labs.

In the CCG survey, 59% of participants said they believe the decision to discontinue testing for marijuana encourages employees to consume marijuana before work. Only 14% said it does not and 27% said they weren’t sure. The Hound Labs survey aligns with this finding. Among the employed marijuana users who participated in that survey, 31% admitted to using marijuana while on their way to the workplace. Additionally, 48% admitted to using marijuana at work, including during breaks as well as while actively working. The survey also found that 60% of participants work for companies that do not conduct drug tests.[ii]

According to a survey conducted by American Addiction Centers, 22.5% of individuals who admit to being current drug users say they use during the workday. Further, “40% of people who work from home full-time say that they have gotten high before and during work hours.”^[iii]

“The legalization of marijuana continues to pose a significant and growing threat to safety in America,” said Jo McGuire, Executive Director of the National Drug and Alcohol Screening Association (NDASA) and a nationally recognized expert on marijuana issues. “Legal marijuana means we are less safe, regardless of whether we are talking about our neighborhoods, schools, workplaces, or highways.”

McGuire continued: “As employers, as parents and grandparents, as educators, and as elected officials, we should be alarmed at what is happening with the legalization of marijuana and its impact on all aspects of society, and actively advocate for safety rather than denying the reality that legal marijuana is making America less productive, less healthy, and less safe.”

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[i] Workforce Drug Test Cheating Surged in 2023, Finds Quest Diagnostics Drug Testing Index Analysis of Nearly 10 Million Drug Tests. May 2024. https://newsroom.questdiagnostics.com/2024-05-15-Workforce-Drug-Test-Cheating-Surged-in-2023,-Finds-Quest-Diagnostics-Drug-Testing-Index-Analysis-of-Nearly-10-Million-Drug-Tests

[ii] Cannabis Use During the Workday. Hound Labs. April 2023. https://houndlabs.com/2024/02/29/survey-offers-new-insights-about-cannabis-use-at-work/

[iii] The Prevalence of Substance Abuse in the Workplace. American Addiction Centers March 2023. https://drugabuse.com/addiction/substance-abuse-workplace/