Cannabis consumption during off-work hours is not associated with an increased risk of a workplace accident or injury, according to a recent study.
The study, “Workplace and non-workplace cannabis use and the risk of workplace injury: Findings from a longitudinal study of Canadian workers,” was published in the Canadian Journal of Public Health on July 31.
The study surveyed 2,745 Canadian workers and asked participants about the frequency of their cannabis consumption, dividing responses into three categories: no past-year consumption; past-year consumption but not before or at work; and past-year consumption including before or at work.
Among those surveyed, 65.5% said they did not consume cannabis in the past year. However, among those who did report cannabis consumption in the past year, 27.4% reported non-workplace consumption while 7.0% reported workplace consumption.
More than one in five (20.1%) of participants who reported consuming cannabis before or at work experienced a workplace injury, compared to 11.1% who reported off-work cannabis consumption. Furthermore, just 10.2% of those who reported no past-year cannabis consumption experienced a workplace injury.
Overall, 11.3% of study participants experienced a workplace injury, though the numbers varied between safety-sensitive jobs and non-safety-sensitive jobs. Nearly one-quarter (22.0%) of workers in safety-sensitive jobs experienced a workplace injury, compared to and 4.9% of workers in non-safety-sensitive jobs.
“While no statistically elevated relationship existed between non-workplace use and workplace injury, workplace use was associated with an almost two-fold increase in the risk of workplace injury,” the study’s authors wrote. “This pattern of findings was seen among workers in both safety-sensitive and non-safety-sensitive jobs.
“Study findings also suggest that, irrespective of whether a worker’s job is safety-sensitive, only workplace cannabis use poses a risk to future workplace injury.”
The study noted its limitations, including not specifying participants’ different methods of cannabis consumption.
The study’s findings also come following a separate report from Quest Diagnostics which found American workers are testing positive for cannabis consumption at a higher rate than ever. A record 4.3% of the general U.S. workforce – which excludes federally mandated safety-sensitive jobs – tested positive for cannabis in 2022, a 10.3% increase from 3.9% positivity in 2021. The increase in positive cannabis tests also applied to the federally mandated safety-sensitive workforce, which saw a 14% increase from 0.86% to 0.98%.
