Giantaxe

Well, you and I live in a state and work in an industry that has rather more commonsense on this.

az2014

I'm curious, what is the point/benefit of this? So what if they smoked 8 months ago? How will that effect them in any way in their day to day job? Whats to stop them just shaving all their hair off?

Here in the UK my company does drug tests using urine. Which checks for metabolites still in the body which shows recent use which could impact the day to day job as it is safety critical.

uk_grenada

Lol, if you wanted to work for harrods store in london when mohammed fayad ran it, you had to have aids and tb tests, they said it was for food handling! But applied it universally.

civilservant

It's not just about the drugs, it goes to your overall credibility as a candidate.

tom169

Having discussed this topic a fair bit with some US coworkers i've never heard of hair tests for this purpose. So I guess it varies quite a bit from city to city, profession to profession.

uk_grenada

In financial and security establishments, taking illegal drugs leaves one open to blackmail and shows a willingness to be illegal [theres a word for that] which would bar you immediately from sensitive positions and get you a black mark if you were being considered for other posts.

I couldnt have worked on nuclear sites or on military or general aviation software if i had...

TheKingOfHearts

We used to only mandate this for employees working on government contracts, changed that recently to be all new employee's.

Whilst I personally couldn't care less if the individual smoked 8 months ago, policy is policy and it is argued it goes to credibility.

Equally - if you have no hair out of anything other than a medical reason, the companies response (I sh*t you not) is to grow out a beard, leg or head hair sufficient to give a sample. Or supply a medical note that you physically can't, else we rescind the offer or employment.

I should add, whilst I'm in software development, the overall company is in heavy equipment, so I can see the logic.

Giantaxe

How does smoking a joint affect one's overall credibility as a candidate?

I would have thought alcoholism affected one's credibility rather more and unless they have some drink-related offence show up on a background check, these employers are typically silent on that.

civilservant

Those that engage in willful illegal activities are perceived, rightly or wrongly, to be less reliable and more of a risk in terms of attendance in my experience.

Ultimately the applicant is asking for a job, they can find someone else if you don't want to comply with their requirements.

Giantaxe

Marijuana is not illegal in several states and not illegal in a bunch more for medicinal reasons. The latter is the irony in all this. Of course, I do understand that at the federal level it is still considered illegal everywhere.

And, again, the statistics clearly show alcoholism is a far bigger risk in terms of attendance (and medical costs etc).

That is certainly true, although I suspect we are moving towards at least certain states making such drug tests for marijuana illegal.

PetrifiedExPat

What if the subject took in the marijuana outside of work in a state where it was legal? Would you not employ them on federal law grounds? All a but pathetic IMO

civilservant

It's not even all about the legality - people who takes drugs are a risk. To the company, to their colleagues.

If a company does not wish to employ a drug user, they have that right.

PetrifiedExPat

I forget where I am sometimes!

Giantaxe

Coffee? Beer? Wine?

PetrifiedExPat

Precisely.