No Drug Or Alcohol Testing After Employee Hits Parked Car

A recent arbitration award in Ontario addresses post-incident breathalyzer alcohol and urine drug tests in a safety sensitive workplace. In Jacobs Industrial v International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 353, 2016 CanLII 198, the grievor was an electrician working for Jacobs Industries, a maintenance contractor at a Suncor refinery site. The site was highly safety sensitive and there were risks of explosions, electric shocks and release of highly poisonous gases. The grievor's employment with Jacobs was terminated when he refused to undergo a post-incident breathalyzer alcohol test and a urine drug test. His employer said he could return if he underwent the drug and alcohol tests and was cleared to return. The Union challenged Jacobs' drug and alcohol testing policy, and whether it was reasonable to require the grievor to undergo such tests given the facts of the incident.