Dealing With Denial: Alberta CA Rules On Accommodation Of Employees On Who Deny Addiction Problem

A new decision by the Alberta Court of Appeal is providing assistance for employers to deal with the situation where an employee, who works in a safety sensitive work environment, fails to disclose his drug use because of his or her belief that the drug used does not affect work performance.

In the decision of Stewart v. Elk Valley Coal Corporation, 2015 ABCA 225, a majority of the Alberta Court of Appeal upheld the dismissal of an appeal from the Human Rights Tribunal where the employee claimed that he had been discriminated against on the grounds of his physical disability, specifically his cocaine addiction or dependency.

The complainant's employment was terminated in 2005 following a collision between the vehicle he was operating on the worksite. The employer had a policy which allowed employees with a dependency or addiction to seek assistance before the occurrence of a "significant event" without fear of discipline.