With more companies and industries deciding on whether or not to continue drug testing, employees are looking into which ones are more likely to do so. In fact, a number of companies have decided to stop testing for cannabis and THC in response to the changing laws and opinions. Amazon is one of the companies making this change. To make things easier for employees looking for the companies following Amazon’s lead, the federal government released a new report to show who drug tests most often.

Drug Test Details

This new federal labor report described the rates of drug testing in U.S. workplaces. It states that this rate has dropped considerably over the past 25 years. This report was a part of an ongoing project that measured businesses’ response to global pandemic.

This survey went out to about 317,000 workplaces across the country. The researchers researched usable responses (5 of 25 questions) from more than 80,000 locations. Employers filled out the questionnaire online without oversight from interviewers. The researchers also explained that each location doesn’t equivalate to a business, but instead each office. 

Drug Test Statistics

In the report, they found that nearly three-quarters of states have legalized medical cannabis while over a third allows recreational adult use. Additionally, they found that the drug testing was less common in legal states. The report also stated that eight of the ten states with the lowest percentage of drug testing locations legalized recreational cannabis.

However, they did find that those in “safety sensitive” industries including transportation and warehousing were more commonly tested. These industries along with the utilities sector both have higher testing rates than any other. Overall, they found that 16.1 of surveyed worksites tested for drugs and/or alcohol. Among the 10 states with the highest screening rates, none of them legalized cannabis. They also found that smaller facilities were far less likely to require screenings. 12.9 percent of locations with less than 20 workers tested. The percentage increased as the number of employees did.

Drug Test Meanings

This report demonstrates that the industries that most commonly drug tests are the industries where employees work in either potentially unsafe environments or in areas where they are charged with the safety of others. The report, however, doesn’t explain how often the different locations test their employees or how often someone fails these tests.

Because of these tests, the trucking industry has suffered a shortage of drivers. However, a recent change by the federal transportation agency may be the answer to this as it has tests that examine saliva samples as opposed to urine samples.

Make sure to check back for more cannabis, hemp, and psychedelic related news.