Whether it is due to increased workplace drug testing or the
impending legalization of recreational marijuana use, the legal
landscape of drug and alcohol addiction and the workplace continues
to evolve. Canadian companies must be able to adapt to this
changing dynamic with sound workplace policies that balance
employees' rights, in the case of addiction, with
employers' needs to protect the safety of the workplace and
co-workers.
In Stewart v. Elk Valley Coal Corp., 2017 SCC 30, the
Supreme Court of Canada reviewed the reasons behind the termination
of an employee who worked in a mine operated by the Elk Valley Coal
Corporation, driving a loader. The mine operations, as well as the
employee's job driving the loader, were clearly safety
sensitive. The company had implemented an alcohol and drug use
policy and all employees were expected to disclose any dependence
or addiction issues pre-emptively, prior to an incident occurring.
The policy did not punish employees
