Drug Testing Laws in California

Drug screening can be quite time consuming and bothersome at times. Mostly when you are forced to comply with drastic measures to ensure you are not trying to cheat your way through the process. Did you know drug tests are not required by the Federal Government? These tests are mainly regulated by state and local laws, but federal, state, and private employees are all subject to drug testing.

California is one of the many states recognized to have hundreds of thousands of businesses, from small to multi-million dollar corporations, comply with the prerequisite of having applicants and employees submit to a drug test when applying or qualifying for a job position. Drug testing in workplaces may not be required or prohibited by the Federal Government, but there are state laws that help justify and enforce such measures. For example, California is one of the several states in which the use of Marijuana is legal for medical and recreational purposes; known as a “compassionate use” law. However, California’s Supreme Court has stated that employees can still be fired for medical marijuana use since marijuana is still illegal under federal law.

Employers in the state of California may require applicants and employees to undergo a drug test as a precondition of employment if it is achieved in a legal manner. An employer must test an entire group of applicants without singling out certain applicants based on their physical characteristics. Physical characteristics such as disability, race, ethnicity, gender and age are protected and upheld in court. The state of California also requires drug tests to be justified with a legitimate cause when an employer decides to test a current, hired employee. If the employer decides to test an employee with no reasonable suspicion (such as red eyes, smell, incoherent speaking, etc.)  or cause (labor related accidents or injuries), the employee has the right to take legal action.

Drug testing may be legal and practiced by a large majority of businesses in the state of California, but many legal claims continue to arise from it till this day. The procedures done to acquire such personal, sensitive information are perceived to be a violation of the applicant’s constitutional right to privacy. The motives behind an employer sending active employees for drug tests is also a reason why many legal issues transpire in workplaces around the U.S. daily. There are plentiful past and current cases in which stationed employees are unjustly sentenced to undergo a drug test based solely on their physical appearance.

The debate on the rights and wrongs of drug screening will continue for years to come. This popular and demanded requirement will also continue to serve an important purpose in workplaces everywhere. Such measures help companies save money from possible injuries and labor related accidents caused by drug impaired employees. The end result of drug testing in California is to help establish a safe, efficient work environment for both the employer and employee.