{"id":1089289,"date":"2018-10-17T21:57:05","date_gmt":"2018-10-17T21:57:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/?p=1089289"},"modified":"2018-10-17T21:57:05","modified_gmt":"2018-10-17T21:57:05","slug":"new-era-as-canada-enters-cannabis-legalization-workplace-implications-outlined","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/?p=1089289","title":{"rendered":"New Era As Canada Enters Cannabis Legalization; Workplace Implications Outlined"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1 class=\"yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793article-title\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-572351 alignleft\" src=\"http:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/dailyoilbulletin.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"80\" \/><\/h1>\n<div class=\"yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793author-bar\">\n<div class=\"yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793grid-x yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793grid-padding-x\">\n<div class=\"yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793large-8 yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793cell yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793vert-align-content\">\n<ul>\n<li>By\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailyoilbulletin.com\/author\/jim-bentein\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" shape=\"rect\">Jim Bentein<\/a><\/li>\n<li id=\"yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793hfk68r-smooth-scroll\">Wednesday, October 17, 2018, 7:05 AM MDT<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793large-4 yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793cell yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793vert-align-content\">\n<div class=\"yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793addthis_inline_share_toolbox\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.dailyoilbulletin.com\/article\/2018\/10\/17\/new-era-as-canada-enters-cannabis-legalization\/\">\n<div id=\"yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793atstbx\" class=\"yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793at-resp-share-element yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793at-style-responsive yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793addthis-smartlayers yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793addthis-animated yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793at4-show\">\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793at-share-btn-elements\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailyoilbulletin.com\/article\/2018\/10\/17\/new-era-as-canada-enters-cannabis-legalization\/#\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" shape=\"rect\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793article-body\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"yiv4082351325\" src=\"https:\/\/ecp.yusercontent.com\/mail?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailyoilbulletin.com%2Fmedia%2Ffiler_public_thumbnails%2Ffiler_public%2Ff1%2F8c%2Ff18c72db-5211-4f09-acdc-d1f3084931d2%2Fweedpicjpg__740x740_q85_subsampling-2.jpg__1024x1024_q85_subsampling-2.jpg&amp;t=1539811857&amp;ymreqid=5eb54fb8-a152-e467-1c93-4204cb01e800&amp;sig=_ZDo7hrJJ.WnbPxZb9GTww--~C\" alt=\"\" \/><\/p>\n<div id=\"yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793article-text\">\n<p>A senior manager of a company specializing in drug and alcohol testing at worksites says he\u2019s concerned about impediments to implementing legislation and practices that will prevent workplace deaths.<\/p>\n<p>Provinces across Canada enter a new era today with the legalization of cannabis. It\u2019s something industry\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www2.jwnenergy.com\/e\/105542\/headlines-2018-02-14-\/4mwms4\/288692451\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" shape=\"rect\">has been preparing for, for some time<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Dan Demers, who specializes in drug and alcohol testing for\u00a0CannAmm Occupational Testing Services, which has offices in Edmonton and North Bay, Ont., said he doesn\u2019t believe governments have taken enough steps to protect Canadians, at worksites and on roadways, as marijuana becomes legal countrywide today.<\/p>\n<p>And Demers thinks the sheer size of the marijuana sector, with companies such as\u00a0Canopy Growth Corporation\u00a0having stock market capitalizations in the billions, will prevent governments from moving ahead on needed legislation and marijuana research.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI worry that the cannabis producers will outspend energy industry associations and other groups in Canada,\u201d he said. \u201cWe [the associations] can\u2019t compete with that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He said companies like his and organizations and government departments involved in workplace safety, need to continue to advance the case that there is much that needs to be done to protect workers from injury and death.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, he worries that the euphoria over pot legalization will prevent needed steps from being taken to protect workers, particularly those at highly industrialized, risky sites such as oilsands plants.<\/p>\n<p>For example, the need for random drug testing has been jeopardized by a recent Supreme Court ruling that challenged the right of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailyoilbulletin.com\/company\/suncor-energy-inc\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" shape=\"rect\">Suncor Energy Inc.<\/a>\u00a0to implement such testing at its worksites (subsequently appealed by the company).<\/p>\n<p>Demers worries that there could be ongoing Supreme Court challenges to the right of employers to conduct drug tests, based on what he sees as the false premise that it violates human rights.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor instance, if there was a Supreme Court judgment that ruled that it doesn\u2019t matter if a crane operator on an industrial worksite consumed marijuana before he went to work, that would worry me greatly,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Demers said he believes the public is better protected from marijuana consumption-caused worksite and roadway injuries and deaths in the U.S. than in Canada because pot remains illegal federally in the U.S., despite recreational and medicinal use being legalized in more than a dozen states. That\u2019s because random testing of safety sensitive jobs is compulsory, even in the states where pot consumption is now legal.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, in Canada, the federal government has failed to implement laws and standards that protect workers, he said.<\/p>\n<p>Ottawa has acted to ensure that employees in the nuclear power industry are subject to random testing, for instance, but that is the only industry where it has taken action to protect worker safety.<\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Absence of national standards<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Demers said provinces, given the absence of national standards, have been forced to act, which has created a hodgepodge of regulations across the country.<\/p>\n<p>Employers have also had to act, even while facing possible human rights and other court challenges.<\/p>\n<p>Air Canada, for instance, has implemented a strict no-pot consumption policy for its pilots and crew.<\/p>\n<p>Municipalities have also needed to act unilaterally. For instance, the\u00a0Toronto Transit Commission\u00a0(TTC) implemented a policy forbidding its drivers from consuming marijuana after a pedestrian was killed by a driver who had consumed pot.<\/p>\n<p>Demers believes the government and Canadians overall have failed to understand how dangerous today\u2019s marijuana can be, given that its hallucinogenic impacts are far more intense than might have been the case 20 years ago, when some Baby Boomers consumed it.<\/p>\n<p>For instance, he cites\u00a0World Health Organization\u00a0(WHO) and Health Canada warnings that neurocognitive impairment from pot use can linger for days after consumption. He said the key ingredient in pot that creates a \u201chigh\u201d tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), is up to 20 times more powerful than in the past.<\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Industry aware of the issue<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Demers believes the federal government, in particular, has failed to conduct the research that was necessary before legalizing pot.<\/p>\n<p>However, he also adds that \u201cnothing has changed\u201d now that it has been legalized, since a large percentage of Canadian adults have consumed marijuana, many of them having done so on a regular basis. And many of them work in the energy sector.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think a lot of companies [involved in the energy industry] are aware of the risks because it [pot consumption by workers] is not new,\u201d he said. \u201cThe major producers [of oil and gas] know what\u2019s coming.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>However, because many of those same producers utilize a large number of contract workers, they are more vulnerable than they may think, he said,<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think they\u2019re doing everything they can,\u201d he said, adding that most have updated their policies around worker impairment issues and trained their occupational safety employees to deal with pot use.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut for a lot of the employers [in the energy industry] it\u2019s out of their hands,\u201d because government legislation and policies are either weak or non-existent. \u201cThey have to fight the big fight themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Companies working with contractors need to work very closely with the contractors to ensure that they are aware of the workplace risks, he said.<\/p>\n<p>Demers said he also is concerned about the safety of Canadians on roadways. For instance, despite the efforts of police forces across the country to train their officers to deal with legalization, Transport Canada has failed to implement any driver safety laws to deal with legalization.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI believe that will cost the lives of Canadians,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Despite his concerns about legalization, Demers said there are a number of steps governments and policy makers can take to protect the health and safety of Canadians, steps that should have been implemented prior to legalization, including:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Defining what \u201csafety-sensitive\u201d occupations are;<\/li>\n<li>Passing legislation that will protect employers and workers;<\/li>\n<li>Making a better effort to educate the public about marijuana use and its potential dangers;<\/li>\n<li>Investing money to help employers deal with the risks of pot consumption in the workplace.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Stronger national standards needed<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Brad Herald, vice-president of Western Canada operations for the\u00a0Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers\u00a0(CAPP), said his association said he agrees with Demers that employers have been left out on a limb regarding legalization.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe need to see stronger national standards,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>He said the rules around \u201cfit for duty\u201d testing are essentially non-existent, which jeopardizes the safety of workers.<\/p>\n<p>Nevertheless, given the reality that pot is now legal, he said CAPP has taken many steps to prepare its members for that reality, by offering seminars, among other initiatives.<\/p>\n<p>Its Health and Safety Steering Committee has dealt with impending legalization for years, he said.<\/p>\n<p>However, CAPP remains concerned about the lack of national standards and legislation.<\/p>\n<p>Nevertheless, he said now that pot will be legal that might remove some \u201cbarriers\u201d in the way of conducting university and other research that may eventually improve worker safety.<\/p>\n<p>Murray Elliott, president and CEO of\u00a0Energy Safety Canada\u00a0(ESC), which works with the energy sector to help it protect the safety of its employees, said ESC has been working with the industry for decades (as were the former Enform Canada and the Oil Sands Safety Association, which merged to become ESC) to prepare the industry for legalization.<\/p>\n<p>In June, ESC and the\u00a0Construction Owners Association of Alberta\u00a0announced the release of a co-produced updated alcohol and drug policy model to support workers in safety-sensitive workplaces.<\/p>\n<p>The Canadian Model for Providing a Safe Workplace (Canadian Model) is a detailed cross-industry guideline to support companies with updating their workplace impairment policies. Developed in co-operation with employers, labour associations and legal and medical experts, it is aimed at providing \u201ca solid legal framework\u201d for employers.<\/p>\n<p>When the policy was released, Elliott was critical of the \u201clegislative gap\u201d in Canada regarding random testing to address workplace impairment, a position he continues to hold.<\/p>\n<p>Elliott said now random drug and alcohol testing needs to be done on a case-by-case basis, which is simply too risky.<\/p>\n<p>Despite this, he said he\u2019s confident most energy industry employers are prepared for legalization.<\/p>\n<p>He worries about safety issues \u201coutside the workplace\u201d particularly on roadways. That could affect the safety of many energy industry workers, since they work in remote areas and experience \u201ca lot of windshield time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He doesn\u2019t have the same concerns about the lobbying power of the Canadian marijuana sector as Demers, arguing that the history of companies involved in the U.S. pot sector shows that the shares of publicly-listed companies involved in the sector in that country have been extremely volatile, limiting the economic clout of the sector.<\/p>\n<p>An email was sent to\u00a0Allan Rewak, executive director of the\u00a0Cannabis Canadian Council, which represents companies and others involved in the marijuana sector, seeking comment on the suggestion the sector might use its financial clout to weaken workplace safety legislation and standards. There was no response.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<ul>\n<li class=\"yiv4082351325ydpb466a442yiv4119988793list-title\">Categories:<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailyoilbulletin.com\/category\/government\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" shape=\"rect\">Government<\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailyoilbulletin.com\/category\/labour-issues\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" shape=\"rect\">Labour Issues<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By\u00a0Jim Bentein Wednesday, October 17, 2018, 7:05 AM MDT &nbsp; \u00a0 A senior manager of a company specializing in drug and alcohol testing at worksites says he\u2019s concerned about impediments to implementing legislation and practices that will prevent workplace deaths. Provinces across Canada enter a new era today with the legalization of cannabis. It\u2019s something [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[138,137,384,385,135,338],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1089289"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1089289"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1089289\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1089291,"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1089289\/revisions\/1089291"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1089289"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1089289"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1089289"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}