Legal "doesn't mean safe": Experts advising stringent workplace policies following cannabis legalization.

• Date: 01 January 2019
• Author: Myers, Ella Jane

Ontarians have been legally allowed to smoke cannabis anywhere they'd smoke a cigarette for a couple months now, but that doesn't mean they can light up any time.

This is especially true if they're on--or about to be on--the clock.

But as cannabis joins alcohol on the list of legal psychoactive substances across Canada, employers are wondering what their rights are when it comes to restricting cannabis use in their workplaces, while safety and legal experts are reassuring them they have tools to do so.

Legalization has been of particular concern in Northern Ontario, largely due to the higher number of safety-sensitive jobs, and to higher substance use rates, according to the Sudbury Community Foundation.

"What we're hearing across all sectors in this industry is very much a significant concern about how we're going to deal with this on the job site," said Clive Thurston, president of the Ontario General Contractors Association (OGCA).

Thurston said a high rate of fatalities on construction sites can be blamed on impairment, and he thinks cannabis will only add to the struggle to manage impairment onsite.

"Under the law we're supposed to maintain a safe work site, and how are we supposed to do that?"

According to legal experts, the best way is by developing rigorous fit-for-duty policies that...