Is your drug and alcohol policy up to date?

On 2 June 2017 the Associate Health Minister Peter Dunne announced that cannabis product cannabidiol (CBD) will soon be available with a Doctor’s prescription.

Currently the therapeutic use of CBD products is an offence under the Misuse of Drugs Act unless the Ministry of Health gives their approval.

In light of this change we suggest it’s timely to review your drug and alcohol policy to ensure that it is up-to-date and addresses any potential health and safety issues arising from an employee taking prescription medications.

In particular check to make sure that your drug and alcohol policy (or your employment agreement ) requires employees to let you know if they using any medication which may impact on their ability to do the safely.

We also suggest that your drug and alcohol policy is amended to ensure that employees are required to provide you with a copy of their prescription (or information from their Doctor) if they claim a non-negative drug test result is due to taking a prescription medication.

If you would like any assistance with reviewing or amending your drug and alcohol policy and/or employment agreement please don’t hesitate to contact us.

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Contact our Employment Law Team today to discuss how we can assist you.

Disclaimer: The information contained in this publication is of a general nature and is not intended as legal advice. It is important that you seek legal advice that is specific to your circumstances.

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