Drug Testing

Washington, DC — The Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), is urging the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to follow established protocol and put science first by denying a petition by several trucking companies to use hair specimen in lieu of federally mandated urine in pre-employment drug tests.

On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), I write in opposition to the petition that several truck companies jointly filed with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). By way of background, TTD consists of 32 affiliate unions that represents workers in all modes of transportation and are subject to the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) drug and alcohol testing standards.[1] This includes members who work in the bus and truck industries and who comply with FMCSA’s testing regulations. We therefore have a vested interest in this proceeding.

The truck companies’ petition seeks exemption from 49 CFR 382.301, FMCSA’s regulations governing pre-employment controlled substances testing, and from 382.105, requiring that employers’ drug (and alcohol) testing programs comply with the procedures of DOT’s Part 40 standards. The petitioners seek these exemptions so that they can test prospective employees’ hair specimen, in lieu of urine specimen, in pre-employment drug tests.

On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), I write to comment on DOT’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) concerning changes to DOT’s drug and alcohol testing regulations. By way of background, TTD consists of 32 affiliate unions that represents workers in all modes of transportation, many of whom are required to undergo DOT drug and alcohol testing. We therefore have a vested interested in the rulemaking.

Through this NPRM, DOT proposes to add four semi-synthetic opioids, (hydrocodone, hydromorphone, oxymorphone, and oxycodone), which are commonly prescribed painkillers to its testing panel. DOT also proposes several other changes to Part 40, including expanded fatal flaws in sample collection, the elimination of blind specimen testing, and changes to regulations concerning Medical Review Officer (MRO) verification.

On behalf of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), I write to comment on the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Request for Information Regarding the Use of the Hair Specimen for Drug Testing. By way of background, TTD consists of 32 affiliate unions that represent workers in all modes of transportation including those who would be directly impacted by any changes made to the current Mandatory Guidelines for Federal Workplace Drug Testing Programs. We therefore have a vested interest in this notice. In addition to the comments that follow, we endorse those submitted independently by TTD affiliates, the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers-Transportation Division (SMART-TD), and the Transport Workers Union of America (TWU).