New York (EFE).- The rate of marijuana use among workers in the United States has reached maximums not seen in the last 20 years, according to the company Quest Diagnostic.
According to a report from this company released this Thursday, in the year 2022 marijuana was detected in 4.6% of the urine tests carried out on workers in the US, which according to Quest is the highest level since 2001.
The company, which offers diagnostic information services, specifies that between 2021 and 2022 the rate of detection of marijuana in urine tests for employees in this country increased by 10.3%.
A historically high level in 2022
Quest also points out that 1.3% of the tests on workers were positive for the use of amphetamines, which represents an increase of 15.4% compared to 2021.
“Our analysis shows that the overall (marijuana) positivity rate of the US workforce continued at a historically high level in 2022, even as much of the country’s workforce returned to the office after the pandemic. ”, Quest general manager Keith Ward said, quoted in the statement.
On the other hand, the company pointed out that in 2022 marijuana was detected in 7.3% of the urine tests carried out on workers who had been involved in work accidents, an increase of 9% compared to those registered in 2021.
“The new peak follows a steady increase in marijuana positivity detected after a work accident between 2012 and 2022,” the report notes. recreational use of marijuana.
Recreational use of marijuana.
Quest Diagnostic links this increase to the legalization of marijuana in various states of the country and recalls that the states of Colorado and Washington were the first to legalize this drug in 2012.
Currently, 19 states, in addition to the capital Washington, have legalized the recreational use of marijuana.
“The active substances in cannabis, including marijuana, can have a major impact on workplace safety and have been shown to slow reaction time, affect memory and impair essential driving skills. The state legalization (in the different states) of the drug creates new challenges for employers,” said Katie Mueller, manager of the National Safety Council, quoted in the statement.
According to Mueller, the information Quest collected “provides compelling evidence that increased employee use of cannabis products may contribute to increased risk of workplace injury.”
