A new Victorian report into workplace drug testing has found that employees prescribed medicinal cannabis have routinely lost their job or faced disciplinary action simply because they have taken medication which is legal.
Legalise Cannabis MP Rachel Payne said the report, a result of a parliamentary inquiry by the Victorian Government’s Legal and Social Issues Committee, highlighted the need for government to keep up with medical advancements.
Ms Payne said that workplace drug testing policies produced by WorkSafe have not been updated in Victoria for 17 years and were drawn up almost a decade before doctors could prescribe medicinal cannabis. More than 1.2 million prescriptions for medicinal cannabis have been issued in Australia since 2017 to help people suffering a range of debilitating conditions.
The report’s first recommendation is “That the Victorian Government support the principle that in non‑mandated industries, drug testing should only occur where employers have a well‑founded belief that an employee may be impaired at work and should only then occur in the context of a comprehensive, alcohol and other drug policy and accompanying support framework as agreed by employers and employees within a workplace relations context.” It also recommended that WorkSafe do work to update its policies and convene a working group of industry stakeholders.
While there was a minority dissenting report by the Liberal Party members of the committee, including the Chair, Trung Luu MLC, he stated the following in the Report’s Foreword:
The challenge comes down to how to test for impairment rather than the mere presence of a drug. Based on the evidence the Committee collected, it is clear that more work needs to be done to find alternative methods to test for impairment that provide a fairer picture of employees’ ability (or lack thereof) to perform their tasks safely.
The Government now has six months to respond in writing to any recommendations made in the report. The response is public and will be placed on the inquiry page on Parliament’s website when it is received.
Read more: Rachel Payne and David Ettershank Media Release Employees prescribed medicinal cannabis sacked to taking legal medication. Download the Final Report Workplace drug testing in Victoria [pdf]. More information and live show Medical Cannabis – Workers’ Rights and Employer Obligations.
