Drug & alcohol policy

A workplace drug and alcohol policy with the duty-to-accommodate language Canadian human-rights law requires, plus reasonable testing and reporting clauses.

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Drug & Alcohol Policy

Effective

1. Purpose

This policy ensures that maintains a safe, productive workplace by preventing impairment from drugs or alcohol on duty. It applies to all employees, contractors, and visitors on Company premises and at Company-sponsored events.

2. Workplace context

Safety-sensitive workplace: . Some clauses below apply only to safety-sensitive roles — these are flagged where applicable.

3. Prohibited conduct

While on duty, on Company property, or while operating Company vehicles or equipment, employees must not (a) be impaired by alcohol or other intoxicants; (b) consume alcohol on duty, except at Company-sanctioned events with reasonable limits; (c) sell, distribute, or possess illegal drugs; or (d) misuse prescription medications in a way that creates impairment risk on duty.

4. Cannabis

Cannabis is legal in Canada under the federal Cannabis Act, but employees may not be impaired by cannabis or any other intoxicant while on duty, including while operating Company vehicles or equipment. Employees with prescribed medical cannabis must follow the Accommodations clause below.

5. Accommodations

Substance-use disorder is recognized as a disability under Canadian and US human-rights law. An employee who self-discloses a substance-use disorder, or whom the Company has reason to believe has one, is entitled to engage in the Company's accommodation process. This may include time off for treatment, modified duties, or referral to the EAP. Disclosure prior to a positive test or disciplinary event will be received in good faith and treated as a request for accommodation, not as discipline.

6. Testing (safety-sensitive roles only)

For safety-sensitive roles, drug and alcohol testing may be conducted (a) post-incident where impairment is a credible factor, (b) where there is reasonable cause based on observed indicators, and (c) as part of return-to-work planning following a substance-related leave. Testing is conducted by qualified third-party providers under chain-of-custody protocols. Random testing is used only where required by regulation or where a labour arbitration body has upheld it for the specific safety-sensitive context.

7. Support

The Company offers confidential support through . Reaching out for help is encouraged and is not, in itself, a basis for discipline.

8. Consequences

Violations may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination, applied proportionately and after considering whether accommodation obligations have been met. Wilful refusal to comply with this policy in a safety-sensitive role is treated more strictly than a one-time impairment incident with subsequent voluntary disclosure.

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Approved by

Name

Date

Made with WalnutsHR Paper · Reviewed for Ontario · April 2026

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No compliance hints for this jurisdiction yet — your document looks good for the basics. Have a lawyer review before sending anything consequential.

About this template

A drug and alcohol policy that holds up under arbitration or human-rights review must do two things at once: protect workplace safety and respect the duty to accommodate substance-use disorders. This template tries to balance both.

When to use it

You operate a safety-sensitive workplace (vehicles, heavy equipment, healthcare, construction).
You want a clear policy that includes cannabis post-legalization in Canada.
An incident has highlighted a gap in your existing rules.

What to include

Statement of which roles are safety-sensitive (testing rules apply only to those).
Clear list of prohibited on-duty conduct.
Cannabis-specific guidance reflecting current legality.
Accommodation language that recognizes substance-use disorder as a disability.
Testing rules limited to legitimate, defensible scenarios.
Confidential support / EAP reference.
Proportionate consequences with disclosure-friendly framing.

Frequently asked questions

Can we test all new hires?

Pre-employment testing is permitted in some US states and by some Canadian arbitrators in safety-sensitive industries, but it's increasingly restricted. Even where allowed, a positive test must trigger the accommodation process, not automatic disqualification, when substance-use disorder is at play.

What about cannabis in safety-sensitive roles?

The Company can require unimpairment, but determining cannabis impairment is technically difficult — current saliva and blood tests detect recent use, not impairment. Most policies focus on observed performance indicators rather than testing for cannabis-specific impairment.

What if an employee is using prescription medication that affects performance?

This is an accommodation issue, not a drug-policy violation. Refer to the accommodation process: review the medical information, identify functional restrictions, and make modifications up to undue hardship.

Legal disclaimer. Random workplace drug testing in Canada is heavily restricted and has been struck down by the Supreme Court of Canada (Irving Pulp & Paper) outside narrow safety-sensitive contexts. Even reasonable-cause testing must be tied to credible observed indicators. Have an employment lawyer review any testing program — the legal exposure for getting it wrong is substantial.

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