Sometimes the good news surrounding cannabis sounds too good to be true. It’s helpful for this, it’s great for that even celebrities and CEO’s alike stand behind the plant’s medicinal value. Cannabis is becoming legal in more places and the widely known cannabinoid CBD is effectively legal nationwide.
But then there’s the catch: drug testing.
Even in areas where recreational cannabis is fully legal, employees might feel restricted by the chance of testing positive for cannabis and promptly losing their jobs. And that’s just not right.
After all, the reason companies drug test their employees in the first place is to determine workplace impairment. There are other reasons, of course, which include legal protection and federal mandates. But we feel it’s pretty unjust for workers to be penalized for taking a natural plant substance that might actually boost creativity and workflow-friendly motivation.
Thankfully, something can be done. Let’s take a look at current drug testing trends before taking a look at a product that might just be the perfect workaround of these circumstances.
Will My Employer Drug Test for THC?
Short answer: Probably so.
Full answer: Maybe not. While drug testing for THC is a standard practice in many companies, especially those based in prohibition-era states, the tide is turning. Many forward-thinking companies — especially those in the cannabis space, fittingly enough — don’t drug test at all. Some cannabis company CEO’s are even perfectly cool with the idea of partaking while on the clock.
It’s best to keep in mind that even companies located where cannabis is fully legal can ask employees to drug test and even enforce the results. Here’s a particularly sad example: the Colorado Supreme Court ruled against a quadriplegic Dish Network employee who was fired because he used medical cannabis. The reason? Cannabis is still illegal under federal law.
Will My Employer Drug Test for CBD?
Short answer: Probably not.
Full answer: While employers aren’t testing for CBD or its primary metabolite, CBD-COOH, there are other possibilities. Certain career fields strongly discourage CBD use.
Take the US military, for example. CBD is “completely forbidden for use by any service member in any of the services at this point of time,” Patricia Deuster, director of the Human Performance Laboratory, told Military.com.
Military members who test positive for THC, even if it’s from faulty testing standards of mislabeled products, may face an “other-than-honorable” discharge. Members of the coast guard are not even allowed to venture into a dispensary.
And anyone who uses CBD may face another rather insidious issue: false positives. Even employees who take hemp-derived CBD products (including CBD isolate) may test positive for THC on initial “point of care” tests because of the antibodies used can confuse CBD for THC.
If this happens to you, don’t panic. Just insist on confirmation testing, which uses spectrometry to (correctly) distinguish CBD from THC. This is a seriously underlooked problem within the world of CBD and one that most sources still seem to be oblivious to. All the more reason to test yourself at home first!
A Simple Solution to Drug Test for CBD vs. THC
Here’s our advice: when in doubt, cleanse your temple and test yourself first!
Products like TestClear’s Detox Program and At-Home Drug Test Kits make that easy. Need to detox your system? Just follow TestClear’s detailed detoxification instructions — they’re tailored to how much THC is in your system. Intense exercise, a high-fat diet, and metabolism boosters (like coffee) may also slightly speed the detox process up.
And when it comes time to ensure your detox was effective, check yourself at home first with TestClear’s At-Home Drug Test Kit. Here’s our review of the experience:
“…these tests were actually a bit more affordable than the most comparable option at our local drugstore and offered equivalent performance and testing thresholds. In terms of reliability and validity, this at-home THC drug test is outstanding.”
The cost may be affordable but the peace of mind that comes from testing yourself at home and not going into a workplace drug test blind? Priceless.
Ultimately, the drug testing dilemma is a personal decision for everyone involved. “Every employer is going to have to consider how they want to deal with this in their workplace,” cannabis attorney Bryna Dahlin tells The Chicago Tribune.
It’s also highly personal for everyone who chooses to partake in cannabis! We believe you shouldn’t have to give it up to get your job of choice — and products like those from TestClear are making that possible.
** Ready to take the next step? Here is our comprehensive guide to passing a drug test within 24 hours.
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