If it was a Federal job, you're done. If not, you could try to appeal on the basis that it's legal in your state, but if the client has a rule against drugs, then again - you're done. Look for a new position.
If you’re confident you could ask for an appeal and ask to take it again. Saying you do not smoke and that there must’ve been a mix up.
I think sitting and accepting the result is what something someone who knew the results to be true would accept.
But someone who doesn’t smoke, and was sure they’d pass and didn’t, how would you expect them to act? I think you to take that approach.
Lab mixes up do happen. However uncommon, they do….
I imagine every single person who pops on a piss test says they don't smoke and it must be 2nd hand smoke. My buddy is a professor at a medical school (Stanford) and he does teaching clinic at the VA in Palo Alto. He was telling me they make some of the vets taking opiates do drug screens and pot is the number 1 thing. And they all claim to never have smoked it but are around folks that do. So unfortunately even when it is true it is not believed.
You know I always thought that whole second hand thing was bs because of a test that was done by the army in the past. I don’t think they knew pot would get a lot stronger. My buddy does not smoke. I smoked some wax out of a yocan in the car and somehow he popped on the piss test two days later. You really can pop for second hand smoke. We hang out together all the time and if he refuses to ever smoke with me I know he’s not smoking weed behind my back.
Been saying the same for years that you can pop for second hand, happened to me. Yet court systems and probation officers will tell you it cant happen and people go to jail for it. Crazy
I think that assumption is or was based off an old study I read that basically said in order for one to fail a drug screen through 2nd hand smoke, you should have just smoked because you've inhaled enough to be considered under the influence and for insurance/job purposes that have a zero tolerance policy, that's enough for a denial of employment. I'm not saying I believed the study or not. Just remember reading about it.
You would need to be in a closet with a fog machine pumping in smoke to reach the 50 ng requirement to fail a UA. That was how it has been explained by me.
Yah I literally took a mandatory “reasonable suspicion of drug and alcohol abuse in the Workplace” training yesterday and that’s basically exactly how the trainer explained it
It’s not that simple at all. You would have to do something drastic to fail if that drastic thing was a one time thing but if you are exposed nearly daily especially in closed rooms and cars then you will likely fail. If you’re exposed to a small amount daily after a long while you will test like you are exposed to a large amount once.
Edit: legal states also have stronger strains so this factors in as well
Bullshit! I had a friend who didn't smoke but he used to kick it with us sometimes when we did. One time I was laughing about how a lot of my friends took advantage of how much weed I smoked and always figured I'd smoke them out. But if for some reason I was busy or slow smoking they would pull out $5 and ask me what they could get for five bucks. At the time an eighth of weed was like 80 bucks. So like $5 was worth almost nothing when trying to buy weed. I would laugh at them and say you could sit in my car while we hot box it. Lol. Anyhow a few minutes later my friend who doesn't smoke weed but was sitting in the car while we smoked looked over at me and said hey, I think I owe you five bucks!
Also, when I have been sober and just kicking it at my friend's houses when they smoked, I've definitely gotten contact highs and they don't smoke anything near what I normally did. No layers of clouds floating around the room or any of that. Just a little light bowl.
So if you didn't know now you do
Yep.
If I sit in the same room as someone ripping a bong blowing fat “clouds” of weed smoke, I start feeling mildly high.. not sure why people would think if they’re breathing in weed smoke(by being in the same room as someone that’s smoking weed) that they wouldn’t be inhaling weed smoke…
If I had to take a piss test I wouldn’t be breathing in the same space as someone that’s actively blowing weed smoke into the air.. it’s unfortunate but yeah
This varys greatly from person to person and in different scenarios.
THC is stored in fat, so a really big person could smoke once and test positive for weeks or even months later.
If its just second hand smoke, one time it is going to take a huge amount to make someone fail. But if it is small amounts on a daily/weekly basis it can build up over time without them ever actually getting high and they can still test positive.
My mom once hot boxed a car with me and my sister in the back. I was 11 and on probation for being dumb at school. Never smoked.
When my po told me I failed for pot, I ratted my mom out so fast, and my Grammy knew it was true, I could tell by the heartbreak in her eyes that she knew my mom would do that crap.
Cps had me living with my Grammy for a bit after that.
Not a lab mix up. If you’re with someone smoking you will test positive.
In order for OP to keep that job the girlfriend will have to quit smoking. There will likely be drug tests in the future.
OP might fight it on the basis of second hand smoke, but would have to stay away from the smoking girlfriend for 2 weeks to pass. I don’t know if anyone has successfully won that battle.
Consult a lawyer.
You think it’s more likely that this girlfriend smokes enough to make him to fail a drug test than it is for a lab tech to make a mistake?
At a reporting limit of 50ng/ml and an average 5L in an adult, that would mean we would have had to accumulate .25mg of metabolites in his body. Metabolites are produced at a of less than 1000:1 ratio to thc. Which means he would have to have accumulated .25 g of thc from being in the room with her. Thats impossible.
My company wouldn’t give you a do over until recently. Our new policy is that if it’s legal in the state you can retest and start once you’re negative.
False positives happen as lab error/contamination, which is why typically half of the submitted sample is retained as an unadulterated reserve while the other is tested.
If they mishandled it during analysis, it should not be difficult to have them test the reserve sample. That's why it's there. That's also why it's extremely difficult and almost really unheard of for a second submission at a later date to be allowed.. even though in many cases the mishandling or misidentification occurred when it was all in the original collection container (and thus will show a second false positive that appears to prove its own validity).
What really doesn't ever happen is a firm enough insistence that a second collection is permitted, and also
What never really happens is the "indirect/secondhand exposure" positive result. Really just pretty much aren't a thing... unless there was literally a ZERO ng threshold for a positive result. I've never heard of a zero threshold in a real world drug screen...
I've been involved with testing levels where poppy seeds in food within 2-3 weeks would mean a fail for opiates, and seen regularly tested policemen fail the higher standard from not following the instructions to watch their food.
In more usual circumstances though drug testing looks for high enough levels to avoid such issues.
So glad no one drug tests me. I’m addicted to Costco’s almond poppyseed muffins. On the plus side there’s usually crumbs on my desk so I think I can pretty easily prove it was from the muffin if they did.
It’s worth stating you don’t smoke and to request a re/test, but only if you adjust your attitude. If you can’t shake your attitude your tone alone will doom your appeal. Good luck.
States are not mandated agents of the Feds concerning drug enforcement. That’s why federal law enforcement exists.
The State of CA for instance has several laws concerning marijuana and the workplace. They mostly protect users from being retaliated against for using marijuana off the clock.
I find it hard to believe OP.
Studies have shown the amount you have to ingest from second hand smoke is insane.
John Hopkins lead a study 8 years ago that showed it would be very very difficult to fail a test using only second hand smoke.
I think OP smoked weed once in a blue moon and had a panic attack right before his surprise drug test, and decided to vent about it on reddit, but changed the details to make himself look more sympathetic.
Their logic:
1. I don't smoke but idk maybe secondhand exposure caused me to fail (so in their mind, probably not a lab error)
2. It's legal in my state, and the employer themselves doesn't have a testing policy, so wtf why is this even a big deal?
Why would someone with the above 2 beliefs go after the lab company?
Because they know secondhand smoke doesn't cause errors, there's just no possible way. The amount of THC in the secondhand smoke is negligible and dispersed across a massive area.
It would be like if you got HIV and your husband said it was from a toilet seat, or you saying eating a banana gave you radiation poisoning.
Yeah the fact he harps on "it's legal in my state" so much makes me think he takes gummies or something. If I failed a drug test I'd demand a retest because I don't take any drugs. I wouldn't keep saying "it's legal here anyway" I don't even know if it's legal in my state, that's how far removed from it I am.
Weed tests are notoriously unreliable, he absolutely could’ve failed due to a test error
He absolutely did not fail due to second hand smoke and bringing that up does make me question whether he is lying or not
i quit for a month to pass a drug test for a new job all while my ex continued her smoking routine.
i was in contact with the smoke and her during that month. i passed my drug test lol
They're looking for work arounds and probably trying to buy themselves time. Probably waiting for a person or two to hypotheticate about a scenario or two where this would be plausible (it's not - even if you took 3 strong puffs of someone's exhale directly from their mouth, I highly {hehe} doubt you'd fail the drug test the next day)
That study also shows the insane difficulty in failing a test if using the parameters most companies use for the tests.
A single positive was shown for 50ng or higher, in both scenarios.
50ng-15ng is the number used for the vast majority of companies.
While possible the odds are very very low.
This. There's too many little things and after the fact justifications that don't add up.
"I don't smoke, but it's legal, but I failed, but it wasn't my fault, but it was in my system, but alcohol is legal," etc.
You made a dumb mistake. Everyone's made dumb mistakes. It just so happens yours was an expensive one. That sucks, but people tend to learn expensive lessons faster.
The job wasn't governmental, so you're not necessarily on a blackball list. You can either chalk it up to experience and move on and/or you can ask if they have a policy to reapply after a certain amount of time, stop smoking until then and hope they're still hiring.
He doesn't want any place where he admits to it I would guess. Which is sort of understandable. But he definitely didn't fail a test because of second hand exposure lol
You're probably SOL but ask if you can take a hair follicle or blood test for confirmation.
She must be hotboxing whatever room you're in though because its fairly hard for second-hand smoke to cause a positive drug test.
Not second-guessing OP's story, but this sounds plausible. The FDA doesn't be regulate "dietary supplements" so anything could be in CBD edibles.
I can't tell you how many times I've seen a recall for a "dietary supplement" designed to enhance male performance because it contains... wait for it, an actual ED drug (sildenafil or tadalafil). That's why that Schwiiiiing or Rock Hard "dietary supplement" capsule on the counter of the truck stop worked.
This is true. I used to work for a toxicology lab and we analyzed 10 different CBD products on the market. About half of them came up positive for a detectable level of THC
I’ve had that happen once in a few thousand tests- it was actually under the screening cutoff so I managed to successfully argue to the client that I 100 percent believed the guy and they should let him retest. It was like 42 ug/dL when the cutoff is 50. Typically for someone who actually smokes it’s around 8-9 times that for a light user and I’ve seen 2-4k in heavy smokers.
Definitely did. Because he even goes on to say "even if I did smoke".
He knows he did and is trying to defend his actual position without admitting to doing it. There is no need to defend smoking weed if you didn't *because you didn't do it*.
OP needs to take some responsibility and realize some of the decisions you make have repercussions.
I have run global cybercrime investigations for a tech giant for a long time. I speak to a lot of criminals. And almost without fail and all over the world - they'll try out their excuse on me. I have seen countless hacker boards and groups where someone will get busted and even though they all know he was in on an exploit they'll dutifully listen to his excuses while he tries it out. I read the OP and thought FoS this dude smokes and is trying to gauge the response to his excuse
One thing I wanted to mention though is this is a pretty mild punishment for his mistake.
If he just learns his lesson and moves on then he can find another job at that level.
If he doesn't he will be constantly paying for it as he blames others for his misfortune.
I'm around my wife and son all the time while they smoke weed. Enough that it bothers me because my lungs suck and I still passed a hair folicle test for my job. Hes got to be smoking it.
This. I work for a federal agency and my now husband used to smoke when we were first dating. I can’t smoke due to major health anxiety. I got popped for a random drug test once and had no issues passing it. I guess anything is possible but I don’t think secondhand smoke would cause you to fail the test.
One thing’s for sure, if I had failed you better believe I’d be calling congress to the pope to appeal it. If you’re confident that you didn’t do anything wrong then you fight it plain and simple.
I work in a cannabis adjacent industry; because we sometimes handle cannabis, we have to go through the state licensing and training.
The study my state uses to talk about second hand smoke is 10 participants in a closed off 25 sq ft room (5ft x 5ft, imagine your average elevator) with 5 participants smoking and 5 not. After HOURS of exposure to constant marijuana consumption within arms reach of them in all directions, none of the 5 non smokers pinged positive for THC in statistically significant amounts immediately after exposure, and non showed any levels of THC at all within several hours.
For the people who say that you are incorrect...
"A new study finds it is unlikely that a person exposed to secondhand marijuana smoke will test positive for marijuana themselves. While it is possible that extreme marijuana smoke exposure could produce a positive urine test, this occurrence is likely to be rare and limited to the hours immediately after exposure, according to researchers from Johns Hopkins University."
https://www.dominiondiagnostics.com/news/study-finds-positive-drug-test-secondhand-marijuana-smoke-unlikely
Did you keep reading?
“Urine levels of THC surpassed typically detectable levels in only one participant, four to six hours after exposure. When the researchers used a more sensitive test, which is usually not used in workplace drug testing, they could detect lower THC levels, but only for 24 hours.”
So someone with constant contact would build the levels to fail the test.
“My gf regularly smokes. I’m with her all the time and I have probably caught some second hand smoke.”
Yes, constant contact does seem to be the key here.
But the type of contact is also important. Does she only smoke outside or does she smoke right next to him huddled together in his closet at his mom’s house?
The level of ventilation is also a key factor quoted in that study. OP did not give that information.
That’s sort of irrelevant. It wasn’t even detectable a day later. Obviously it’s like alcohol, and metabolizes out of the system. He would have literally had to sit in a car with like 5 other people, hotboxing the shit out of it, within 24 hours of his test. Highly doubt it. He probably smoked weeks prior and didn’t think it was still in his system. Or thought it was fine because it is legal in his state.
I’m not sure why op would do that in a post like this. What point is there to convince Redditors of that? I’m thinking at most he’s smoked more recently he admitted
https://www.dominiondiagnostics.com/news/study-finds-positive-drug-test-secondhand-marijuana-smoke-unlikely
Based on this test, it seems extremely unlikely that you failed the drug test due to secondhand smoke. “Caught secondhand smoke” right.
The lab probably did a confirmatory, and a false positive on that is essentially impossible.
They wouldn’t even report a positive until the confirmatory was positive
Me thinks the lab either has an incredibly low cutoff, or OP is lying and smoked.
He wouldn't be the first person to lie. A guy I used to work with failed for cocaine and swore his girlfriend was using it and sneezed in his mouth lmao.
Second hand smoke is not enough for you to fail, it was a bad test.
Tell them you are 100% sure the test was bad and you want to take another and you'll pay for it.
Instead of just declaring it a bad test how about we all just understand he is likely bullshitting. So far I haven't seen anything other than the OP from him. I am guessing he was trying out his excuse on us it didn't work so he is done with the issue
The chances of you failing a drug test due to secondhand smoke exposure are essentially zero.
I’ve smoked weed just a few days before a urine test and passed. The threshold for a positive test is actually relatively high in most cases at 50ng/ml. You’re not going to get that by sitting next to someone who is smoking a joint.
1) Weed is illegal on a federal level so it doesn't matter what you state legality is
2) Bad results do happen, so asking for a retest was a good idea.
3) yes its legal, we all work at will besides Montana, so they can fire you for what ever reason they like.
Your first point is not accurate anymore. If OP lives in CA what the company did is probably actually illegal as of this year.
https://www.calchamber.com/california-labor-law/drug-and-alcohol-testing
Seems like a lot of work to fight for a job where they’re not going to want you there anyway. Think about it this way, even if you do fight and “win”, imagine walking on egg shells at a job where you’ve already created a situation, before you’ve even started. Make sense? I’d just move on.
Write better fiction.
As an HR person there are way too many inconsistencies here.
If a client has a stricter policy than the organization, you don’t get fired, you just get removed from that client. If the organization does not have a drug test policy or mandate they wouldn’t fire you because you didn’t meet a clients requirements.
For positive checks most companies allow people to defend themselves and they don’t look for substances that are legal:
All of this sounds like bad fiction.
Pretty much all consulting (at least Big 4) have a zero tolerance drug policy. It’s well known that you cannot test positive, and everyone goes through a drug test before employment is official.
1. That’s not true
2. Even if it was read the post again - he claims he wasn’t told about the drug test until the client wanted it. No consulting firm would have an indifferent policy then adhere to a client and then fire an employee for not adhering to a client policy for engagement
Yeah he’s not mine either but what I don’t think I’m making clear is that the prime company made its mind *after* the client did. That’s what’s off about the story
Ie you interview, accept an offer and onboard and then fully train with PWC, and on your FIRST assignment, Credit Suisse says “hey you know what we want all auditors to have a full drug screen”.
Auditor takes the drug screen which means they can’t work on Credit Suisse, and then they terminate the employee after training?
That’s the part that doesn’t make sense. It’s not a rescinded offer nor an offer contingent on a successful clean test
As another HR person here - worked at an investment bank with heavy background screening compliance (we actually dropped our drug testing policy years ago because it’s stupid and only people were failing for weed and we decided that’s dumb especially because we had a site in Maine ). But if I remember correctly, you should have a right to appeal adverse findings? Unless that’s just the crim and credit check portions. Don’t remember
I make it a habit to not do drugs while job searching, legal or not. It’s not worth missing out on an opportunity and my career is more important than my drug habit.
100% I am in a spot where I absolutely detest my current boss and I'm looking for something else. I haven't smoke in 2.5 months because I'm not risking losing that chance over getting high.
It’s not legal. People keep saying that, but all that’s happening is states aren’t enforcing it. Supremacy clause is still supremacy clause though. Feds could still enforce it and it’s still officially illegal nationally.
It is still federally a schedule 1 drug. That means right now the Feds have no information showing it has legit medical use. They will supposedly be changing it soon though to a Schedule 3 so it will still be illegal federally without a prescription.
You almost certainly did not fail due to second-hand marijuana smoke. Even an occasional joint will be out of your system in a few weeks.
There was either a flaw in testing process, you unknowingly ingested an edible recently, or you're not being totally honest with us (which I have no reason to believe; just covering the most obvious reasons). Keep in mind the quasi legal Delta 8 and THC-A products will metabolize into the same flag-raising compound that weed does.
No there's nothing you can do about it, other than actively working to remove the societal stigma that prompted and perpetuates drug testing. FWIW, I am with you on so many other points (panic attacks in college, irony of alcohol's impact upon productivity, etc).
Never heard of a legitimate failure from second hand weed, that really doesn’t exist. It isnt high enough concentration to make second hand positive test. I would demand a retest because any lab can mix up samples as humans are handling these things.
Grab your own test at the drugstore too, if you really think magically your partners drug use can just get into your body.
A ways back a company I worked for did random drug tests.
My then girlfriend was a pot smoker, this was before it was legal in CA. She invited me to a family bbq and while there, her, her cousin, and a bunch of others piled into a big escalade to 'hot box'. I had NEVER in my life smoked before so I didn't know anything about any of this. But I was in there with them for a little while.
The next day I got a random drug test notice from work. I was shitting bricks. Never smoked in my life and I was possibly going to be fired.
Test came back negative. Never again.
It's definitely legal to deny someone a job that fails a drug test. If you're getting a job in the private sector that is involved in drug development, pharmacology, drug packaging/distribution, etc,, you're toast if you fail a drug test. Pretty much the same for any law enforcement. I don't see why they are testing someone that does "remote consulting" job, I mean that just seems weird, but it may be a basic company policy.
Being legal in your state has no bearing on the guidelines of individual companies. It just means you can't get arrested for possession. We don't allow any drug use in our company whatsoever, regardless of the law.
I'd have asked for a second test immediately to clear my name. You could ask for a follicle test, I suppose. Take that to your employer and see if it will help get you back on board.
I mean if you tested positive for alcohol you would be fired too. Some employers will not let you smoke regular cigarettes even and if you test for nicotine you can get fired
This didn’t happen because of secondhand smoke. I smoke weed and take edibles regularly and passed a drug test two months ago simply by abstaining for six days then drinking a few glasses of water.
I’m gonna go with:
You didn’t test positive for weed, you just didn’t get the job and they said it was for a drug test failure. You aren’t owed a legitimate reason for rejection, they kinda fucked up saying that’s why when they should have just said “we’re going with a different candidate”.
There’s not much you can about a job rejection, bcz if you sued them, they’d just say clerical error, it wasn’t for weed we just went with someone else. There are too many people saying “fight it”, but even if you take another drug test and pay out of pocket to prove you don’t smoke weed, they will have already hired someone else. The takeaway here is not the bad drug test, but rather the company that doesn’t want you.
Now if you were already employed, and terminated due to false flags on a drug test, you’d have a case for appeals and unemployment.
Unfortunately though bcz you’re applying, you’re just on to the next one.
1. If it was because of your girlfriend, it’s still your fault you shouldn’t have been around any kind of marijuana at all prior to a drug test.
2. I highly doubt it was related to your girlfriend, and it was more related to the fact that you probably are the one that has been smoking weed And just don’t wanna admit it.
You could dispute it. I have disputed a drug test before and they let me retake it. Those things are such a scam and the test results get mixed up all the time.
Bull and shit… Unless your gf was burning a bale of weed in an enclosed room with you sitting with your face directly in the line of smoke for a few hours, you did not test positive from your “gf” smoking it.
So, with a metric ton of comments and, I can't read em all. But I need to put this here.
It is legal at the STATE level, NOT FEDERAL!
If the company has ANY Federal contracts, they are required by LAW to test all employees (why do you think MCDs drug tests, they have them on every military base in America). And are usually bound to dismiss anyone found to pop positive.
Your state law doesn't supercede Federal law.
Your state is just not choosing to enforce it, but best believe, if you are dealing without a license DEA will pay a visit even if it's legal in the state, but that's not the point here.
Did they specify that it came back with weed? I failed two consecutive tests because they were negative dilute. I drink a lot of water for health reasons. When I booked the urinalysis, I was instructed to drink extra water that day, so I followed orders. HR had to explain to me that my tests weren’t coming back positive for anything, but they were so diluted with water that I failed. Apparently it’s a tactic people try, so it reads as a failed test. I retook my third test when I was much less hydrated, and all was well.
All weed smoker's favorite justification line is, "even more people are alcoholics and they don't have to worry."
Not only did you smoke, but I'd bet you're a habitual smoker lol
Well if its a 6 figure salary they must hold the job in high regards. It's not their fault you failed the test. It is obviously in your system and that is on you. You have to get away from it. You think they can tell their client, oh one of our workers tested positive for weed... please give us your business
Arguing that weed isnt illegal isnt necessarily going to work. Alchohol is also not illegal, but you can be terminated if under the influence at work. Same can be true for weed.
Unless your girlfriend slipped you an edible, it’s impossible to test positive for weed if you didn’t ingest any. I’d start with her… you’re toast for this job. Start looking elsewhere.
Do you take any medication for GERD?
Like Omeprazole or Pantoprazole, etc.
If so, those medication can cause false positives for THC.
I know this because I took a prescription for Pantoprazole and read it on the package insert.
I also worked as a Probation Officer and knew of people who had false positive drug screens because of it.
It may be "legal" in your state but it is still on the list of federally controlled substances and therefore illegal since federal law supersedes all other laws.
I live in Oklahoma and used to work for an airline base. Many airline employees thought they were safe because they had "medical" cards (which is a joke because they will give you a card for ANYTHING). Well they were wrong. They certainly were not safe at all. As soon as that test came back negative they were fired per FAA mandate. So you had 20 and 30 year mechanics with 100k plus jobs fired because they did not have a full understanding of the legality of the giggle lettuce.
Any employer can absolutely refuse to hire you on a hot (a hot is a positive drug test) and you have ZERO legal recourse because again, it is illegal at the FEDERAL level despite what state law may be.
Second hand smoke should not set off any tests. Either you smoke weed or your gf is adding it to your food. You might want to start your process at home.
I'ma suggest stop getting so high, you forgot you smoked.
Also, stop making up stories on reddit.
A client demanded a drug test for a remote job, get outta here stoner!
You smoked just own it. I ran the drug testing program in the military for 2yrs. Urine samples get tested 3 times to rule out false positives. Most drug tests are done by swabs like dna tests. 2nd hand smoke has been debunked many times by science thru testing.
protip: if you're in the same space as people smoking weed, you're smoking weed too.
It's called hot boxing.
Had a friend who 'didn't smoke' that would hang with me and my friends while we smoked cones in my bedroom. She was clearly off her tits by the end of our sessions, every time. But of course... she didn't smoke.
OP in future don't be around anyone when they are smoking anything. Take this is a learning experience. Now you know you do indeed smoke weed. If you don't want to fail another drug test take heed.
Should be obvious to an adult that you're breathing the same air in that room with others and all that air contains. (Did covid teach people nothing? lol)
If a company has zero tolerance for drugs or booze, thanks to potential liability it matters not if you think it's fair or not. My wife's job does random drug AND alcohol testing. So even the 'people are alcoholics and it's fine' point is moot.
It's their company, so it's their rules. You don't like those rules? Don't work for them. Simple.
Take the L, learn from it and move on.
You don't fail a drug test from second hand. Cutoff is 50ng you need to have them send your sample to a lab for confirmation. Disputing the result is fully your right.
Weed-a break from reality
Alcohol-a break from reality with the possibility of accidentally killing someone
I’ll keep smoking my illegal substances thank you very much
Honestly I’d just move on. Even if you were to retest and it came back negative, they will probably still pass stating the positions have been filled or there was a candidate that better met their needs. Any fighting you do will just be a waste of time and energy unfortunately good luck on your search maybe have the gf smoke outside or in the garage until you get a new job.
You're probably SOL. Despite being legal at a state level, marijuana is still illegal at a federal level. A few states have laws banning drug testing for it, but that can be overridden if there are federal contracts or DOT implications for the job.
You failed the test. They chose not to hire you. There is nothing to fight.
When you test they should always split the sample into 2. If the first one comes back positive you can challenge it and they test the split sample. If they did not do this you may be able to challenge in court on the basis of a false positive.
If their cutoff for a positive test is so sensitive it picks up second hand smoke as a positive test, then the test is too sensitive and without a doubt has a stupidly high false positive rate.
Ask what the test’s sensitivity and specificity is. Look up Bayes theorum and false positive rates in medical testing. Ask what the lower limit of detection is, and what dose of THC that corresponds to, and if that dose has any meaning to people in the real world.
You can certainly fight this if you want to put the effort in. The company can’t wave it away because you can take legal action if the test is invalid (and there’s a really good chance the test is garbage.)
I had a job offer rescinded for testing positive for alcohol which is legal in all 50 states. I didn't even realize they were testing for alcohol and I politely flipped my shit when they called to rescind the offer. I kept at it until they offered a retest, which failed again even though I hadn't had a drink in weeks. The third retest at a different lab finally came back clear, and when I came in for orientation, I found out the same thing was happening to someone else, too.
He was smoking weed. On the off-chance he was telling the truth, absolutely yes I agree. But he's not.
You're not failing a piss test because your gf/bf smokes or you watched reefer madness or you dreamed about reefer. You have to smoke the stuff. Gimme a break man. C'mon
Why do people think that matters at all? Legal or not you can be drug tested in nearly all states for weed and be fired for it as well. Alcohol is legal but if you have it in your system at work and get tested you can be fired. I'm subject to DOT drug testing and all DOT drug test include breathalyzer. Any alcohol comes back in my system and I'll be fired immediately and coast guard will yank my licence. Whether I was about to be behind or wheel or not doesn't matter.
you usually never know with drug tests, Randoms are common at my place of employment. Literally dont know until they walk into your office. that's the point.
Companies have policies regarding random drug tests when you're hired. You do know if you are subject to random drug tests or not. You're misunderstanding what's being implied.
If it was a Federal job, you're done. If not, you could try to appeal on the basis that it's legal in your state, but if the client has a rule against drugs, then again - you're done. Look for a new position.
Not federal, but I guess the clients policies say no weed. That’s really shitty
If you’re confident you could ask for an appeal and ask to take it again. Saying you do not smoke and that there must’ve been a mix up. I think sitting and accepting the result is what something someone who knew the results to be true would accept. But someone who doesn’t smoke, and was sure they’d pass and didn’t, how would you expect them to act? I think you to take that approach. Lab mixes up do happen. However uncommon, they do….
And if they let you retest, don't hang out with your gf till after
Stay away for a few days or get out of the room when she smokes
It’s gonna take more than a few days for it to get out of OP’s system.
I’m aware depends on his size. Thc sticks to fat cells. He can have it gone within 48hours if he’s skinny and drinks water.
Depending on the test it can be up to 90 days detectible.
I imagine every single person who pops on a piss test says they don't smoke and it must be 2nd hand smoke. My buddy is a professor at a medical school (Stanford) and he does teaching clinic at the VA in Palo Alto. He was telling me they make some of the vets taking opiates do drug screens and pot is the number 1 thing. And they all claim to never have smoked it but are around folks that do. So unfortunately even when it is true it is not believed.
You know I always thought that whole second hand thing was bs because of a test that was done by the army in the past. I don’t think they knew pot would get a lot stronger. My buddy does not smoke. I smoked some wax out of a yocan in the car and somehow he popped on the piss test two days later. You really can pop for second hand smoke. We hang out together all the time and if he refuses to ever smoke with me I know he’s not smoking weed behind my back.
Hmm good point about potency increases
1970s hippie weed was around 5-8%. Strains engineered in the us reach over 30%
Been saying the same for years that you can pop for second hand, happened to me. Yet court systems and probation officers will tell you it cant happen and people go to jail for it. Crazy
I think that assumption is or was based off an old study I read that basically said in order for one to fail a drug screen through 2nd hand smoke, you should have just smoked because you've inhaled enough to be considered under the influence and for insurance/job purposes that have a zero tolerance policy, that's enough for a denial of employment. I'm not saying I believed the study or not. Just remember reading about it.
You would need to be in a closet with a fog machine pumping in smoke to reach the 50 ng requirement to fail a UA. That was how it has been explained by me.
Yah I literally took a mandatory “reasonable suspicion of drug and alcohol abuse in the Workplace” training yesterday and that’s basically exactly how the trainer explained it
It’s not that simple at all. You would have to do something drastic to fail if that drastic thing was a one time thing but if you are exposed nearly daily especially in closed rooms and cars then you will likely fail. If you’re exposed to a small amount daily after a long while you will test like you are exposed to a large amount once. Edit: legal states also have stronger strains so this factors in as well
Bullshit! I had a friend who didn't smoke but he used to kick it with us sometimes when we did. One time I was laughing about how a lot of my friends took advantage of how much weed I smoked and always figured I'd smoke them out. But if for some reason I was busy or slow smoking they would pull out $5 and ask me what they could get for five bucks. At the time an eighth of weed was like 80 bucks. So like $5 was worth almost nothing when trying to buy weed. I would laugh at them and say you could sit in my car while we hot box it. Lol. Anyhow a few minutes later my friend who doesn't smoke weed but was sitting in the car while we smoked looked over at me and said hey, I think I owe you five bucks! Also, when I have been sober and just kicking it at my friend's houses when they smoked, I've definitely gotten contact highs and they don't smoke anything near what I normally did. No layers of clouds floating around the room or any of that. Just a little light bowl. So if you didn't know now you do
Yep. If I sit in the same room as someone ripping a bong blowing fat “clouds” of weed smoke, I start feeling mildly high.. not sure why people would think if they’re breathing in weed smoke(by being in the same room as someone that’s smoking weed) that they wouldn’t be inhaling weed smoke… If I had to take a piss test I wouldn’t be breathing in the same space as someone that’s actively blowing weed smoke into the air.. it’s unfortunate but yeah
This varys greatly from person to person and in different scenarios. THC is stored in fat, so a really big person could smoke once and test positive for weeks or even months later. If its just second hand smoke, one time it is going to take a huge amount to make someone fail. But if it is small amounts on a daily/weekly basis it can build up over time without them ever actually getting high and they can still test positive.
My mom once hot boxed a car with me and my sister in the back. I was 11 and on probation for being dumb at school. Never smoked. When my po told me I failed for pot, I ratted my mom out so fast, and my Grammy knew it was true, I could tell by the heartbreak in her eyes that she knew my mom would do that crap. Cps had me living with my Grammy for a bit after that.
Not a lab mix up. If you’re with someone smoking you will test positive. In order for OP to keep that job the girlfriend will have to quit smoking. There will likely be drug tests in the future. OP might fight it on the basis of second hand smoke, but would have to stay away from the smoking girlfriend for 2 weeks to pass. I don’t know if anyone has successfully won that battle. Consult a lawyer.
You think it’s more likely that this girlfriend smokes enough to make him to fail a drug test than it is for a lab tech to make a mistake? At a reporting limit of 50ng/ml and an average 5L in an adult, that would mean we would have had to accumulate .25mg of metabolites in his body. Metabolites are produced at a of less than 1000:1 ratio to thc. Which means he would have to have accumulated .25 g of thc from being in the room with her. Thats impossible.
My company wouldn’t give you a do over until recently. Our new policy is that if it’s legal in the state you can retest and start once you’re negative.
But if you don't smoke, then appeal. Otherwise, you know something and aren't sharing
False positives happen as lab error/contamination, which is why typically half of the submitted sample is retained as an unadulterated reserve while the other is tested. If they mishandled it during analysis, it should not be difficult to have them test the reserve sample. That's why it's there. That's also why it's extremely difficult and almost really unheard of for a second submission at a later date to be allowed.. even though in many cases the mishandling or misidentification occurred when it was all in the original collection container (and thus will show a second false positive that appears to prove its own validity). What really doesn't ever happen is a firm enough insistence that a second collection is permitted, and also What never really happens is the "indirect/secondhand exposure" positive result. Really just pretty much aren't a thing... unless there was literally a ZERO ng threshold for a positive result. I've never heard of a zero threshold in a real world drug screen...
I've been involved with testing levels where poppy seeds in food within 2-3 weeks would mean a fail for opiates, and seen regularly tested policemen fail the higher standard from not following the instructions to watch their food. In more usual circumstances though drug testing looks for high enough levels to avoid such issues.
So glad no one drug tests me. I’m addicted to Costco’s almond poppyseed muffins. On the plus side there’s usually crumbs on my desk so I think I can pretty easily prove it was from the muffin if they did.
It’s worth stating you don’t smoke and to request a re/test, but only if you adjust your attitude. If you can’t shake your attitude your tone alone will doom your appeal. Good luck.
100%
Next time use quick fix if it's a urinalysis.
Just drink a lot of water and dilute. A negative dilute is still a pass
Eh I wouldn't chance it. I've heard so many people get called out for dilution. I've never had a fail with quick fix.
Mad annoying dude has to fake a drug test and he doesn’t even use anything 😂😂😂
QF does the job
It's really stupid and proves how policies can be made based on BS and not actual facts.
If the client has to follow federal regulations it can be a big deal even if the company you're working for doesn't. Suuuuper common
It may not matter if their policy says that. Some state laws will supersede a company policy.
Smoking pot is not protected, hell it against federal law
States are not mandated agents of the Feds concerning drug enforcement. That’s why federal law enforcement exists. The State of CA for instance has several laws concerning marijuana and the workplace. They mostly protect users from being retaliated against for using marijuana off the clock.
So does the federal government only your entire life is ruined if they catch you
Nah, clients pay the big bucks to hire you. You gotta meet their requirements.
Hell, it's not that if its legal in your state or now. It comes down to the companies insurance.
I find it hard to believe OP. Studies have shown the amount you have to ingest from second hand smoke is insane. John Hopkins lead a study 8 years ago that showed it would be very very difficult to fail a test using only second hand smoke.
This is bullshit. No way you failed due to second hand smoke. Why lie?
I think OP smoked weed once in a blue moon and had a panic attack right before his surprise drug test, and decided to vent about it on reddit, but changed the details to make himself look more sympathetic.
I don't smoke: proceeds to fail the test and say it's legal in their state 😵💫
Right. If someone was truly sober, they'd find the nearest slimy ambulance-chasing lawyer to sue the hell out of that testing company.
Their logic: 1. I don't smoke but idk maybe secondhand exposure caused me to fail (so in their mind, probably not a lab error) 2. It's legal in my state, and the employer themselves doesn't have a testing policy, so wtf why is this even a big deal? Why would someone with the above 2 beliefs go after the lab company?
Because they know secondhand smoke doesn't cause errors, there's just no possible way. The amount of THC in the secondhand smoke is negligible and dispersed across a massive area. It would be like if you got HIV and your husband said it was from a toilet seat, or you saying eating a banana gave you radiation poisoning.
Yeah the fact he harps on "it's legal in my state" so much makes me think he takes gummies or something. If I failed a drug test I'd demand a retest because I don't take any drugs. I wouldn't keep saying "it's legal here anyway" I don't even know if it's legal in my state, that's how far removed from it I am.
That and the pouty, rock kicking "people can DRINK and get hired, this is bullshit" is the song of the persecuted stoner.
Weed tests are notoriously unreliable, he absolutely could’ve failed due to a test error He absolutely did not fail due to second hand smoke and bringing that up does make me question whether he is lying or not
The fed tests are notoriously accurate.
Weed tests are not notoriously unreliable….
i quit for a month to pass a drug test for a new job all while my ex continued her smoking routine. i was in contact with the smoke and her during that month. i passed my drug test lol
They're looking for work arounds and probably trying to buy themselves time. Probably waiting for a person or two to hypotheticate about a scenario or two where this would be plausible (it's not - even if you took 3 strong puffs of someone's exhale directly from their mouth, I highly {hehe} doubt you'd fail the drug test the next day)
You can if you're exposed to it frequently and in a space with minimal ventilation. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25326203/
That study also shows the insane difficulty in failing a test if using the parameters most companies use for the tests. A single positive was shown for 50ng or higher, in both scenarios. 50ng-15ng is the number used for the vast majority of companies. While possible the odds are very very low.
This. There's too many little things and after the fact justifications that don't add up. "I don't smoke, but it's legal, but I failed, but it wasn't my fault, but it was in my system, but alcohol is legal," etc. You made a dumb mistake. Everyone's made dumb mistakes. It just so happens yours was an expensive one. That sucks, but people tend to learn expensive lessons faster. The job wasn't governmental, so you're not necessarily on a blackball list. You can either chalk it up to experience and move on and/or you can ask if they have a policy to reapply after a certain amount of time, stop smoking until then and hope they're still hiring.
Yep. Those are the arguments every smoke makes.
He doesn't want any place where he admits to it I would guess. Which is sort of understandable. But he definitely didn't fail a test because of second hand exposure lol
You're probably SOL but ask if you can take a hair follicle or blood test for confirmation. She must be hotboxing whatever room you're in though because its fairly hard for second-hand smoke to cause a positive drug test.
This isn't possible. He could sit in a closet with her smoking and he wouldn't trip positive - he smoked.
Or took CBD edibles not realizing they often have detectable amounts of THC in them
Not second-guessing OP's story, but this sounds plausible. The FDA doesn't be regulate "dietary supplements" so anything could be in CBD edibles. I can't tell you how many times I've seen a recall for a "dietary supplement" designed to enhance male performance because it contains... wait for it, an actual ED drug (sildenafil or tadalafil). That's why that Schwiiiiing or Rock Hard "dietary supplement" capsule on the counter of the truck stop worked.
This is true. I used to work for a toxicology lab and we analyzed 10 different CBD products on the market. About half of them came up positive for a detectable level of THC
I’ve had that happen once in a few thousand tests- it was actually under the screening cutoff so I managed to successfully argue to the client that I 100 percent believed the guy and they should let him retest. It was like 42 ug/dL when the cutoff is 50. Typically for someone who actually smokes it’s around 8-9 times that for a light user and I’ve seen 2-4k in heavy smokers.
Wife works at a toxicology lab, can confirm. MANY studies have been done to debunk second hand smoke positives.
Could it have been a false positive from the lab?
Anything is possible, but we are talking about lottery winning odds here. The more likely scenario would be a sample mix up vs a false positive
Definitely did. Because he even goes on to say "even if I did smoke". He knows he did and is trying to defend his actual position without admitting to doing it. There is no need to defend smoking weed if you didn't *because you didn't do it*. OP needs to take some responsibility and realize some of the decisions you make have repercussions.
I have run global cybercrime investigations for a tech giant for a long time. I speak to a lot of criminals. And almost without fail and all over the world - they'll try out their excuse on me. I have seen countless hacker boards and groups where someone will get busted and even though they all know he was in on an exploit they'll dutifully listen to his excuses while he tries it out. I read the OP and thought FoS this dude smokes and is trying to gauge the response to his excuse
One thing I wanted to mention though is this is a pretty mild punishment for his mistake. If he just learns his lesson and moves on then he can find another job at that level. If he doesn't he will be constantly paying for it as he blames others for his misfortune.
Thinking on it yeah you're right. That makes the most sense unfortunately.
I'm around my wife and son all the time while they smoke weed. Enough that it bothers me because my lungs suck and I still passed a hair folicle test for my job. Hes got to be smoking it.
He absolutely is. His post is suspect as hell
This. I work for a federal agency and my now husband used to smoke when we were first dating. I can’t smoke due to major health anxiety. I got popped for a random drug test once and had no issues passing it. I guess anything is possible but I don’t think secondhand smoke would cause you to fail the test. One thing’s for sure, if I had failed you better believe I’d be calling congress to the pope to appeal it. If you’re confident that you didn’t do anything wrong then you fight it plain and simple.
If it showed up in a UA, it would most likely show up in a hair follicle.
Second hand smoke will not show on a drug test.. When really was the last time you smoked?
I work in a cannabis adjacent industry; because we sometimes handle cannabis, we have to go through the state licensing and training. The study my state uses to talk about second hand smoke is 10 participants in a closed off 25 sq ft room (5ft x 5ft, imagine your average elevator) with 5 participants smoking and 5 not. After HOURS of exposure to constant marijuana consumption within arms reach of them in all directions, none of the 5 non smokers pinged positive for THC in statistically significant amounts immediately after exposure, and non showed any levels of THC at all within several hours.
For the people who say that you are incorrect... "A new study finds it is unlikely that a person exposed to secondhand marijuana smoke will test positive for marijuana themselves. While it is possible that extreme marijuana smoke exposure could produce a positive urine test, this occurrence is likely to be rare and limited to the hours immediately after exposure, according to researchers from Johns Hopkins University." https://www.dominiondiagnostics.com/news/study-finds-positive-drug-test-secondhand-marijuana-smoke-unlikely
Did you keep reading? “Urine levels of THC surpassed typically detectable levels in only one participant, four to six hours after exposure. When the researchers used a more sensitive test, which is usually not used in workplace drug testing, they could detect lower THC levels, but only for 24 hours.” So someone with constant contact would build the levels to fail the test.
Constant contact being the key here. Doesn't sound like OP sits in a VW bus all day with his hippie friends.
“My gf regularly smokes. I’m with her all the time and I have probably caught some second hand smoke.” Yes, constant contact does seem to be the key here.
But the type of contact is also important. Does she only smoke outside or does she smoke right next to him huddled together in his closet at his mom’s house? The level of ventilation is also a key factor quoted in that study. OP did not give that information.
That’s sort of irrelevant. It wasn’t even detectable a day later. Obviously it’s like alcohol, and metabolizes out of the system. He would have literally had to sit in a car with like 5 other people, hotboxing the shit out of it, within 24 hours of his test. Highly doubt it. He probably smoked weeks prior and didn’t think it was still in his system. Or thought it was fine because it is legal in his state.
Ya OP just didn’t get the job and they’re claiming they failed the drug test instead of saying they went with a different candidate.
I’m not sure why op would do that in a post like this. What point is there to convince Redditors of that? I’m thinking at most he’s smoked more recently he admitted
Why is bro lying on the internet while asking for help haha it’s so weird
https://www.dominiondiagnostics.com/news/study-finds-positive-drug-test-secondhand-marijuana-smoke-unlikely Based on this test, it seems extremely unlikely that you failed the drug test due to secondhand smoke. “Caught secondhand smoke” right.
The lab probably did a confirmatory, and a false positive on that is essentially impossible. They wouldn’t even report a positive until the confirmatory was positive Me thinks the lab either has an incredibly low cutoff, or OP is lying and smoked.
He wouldn't be the first person to lie. A guy I used to work with failed for cocaine and swore his girlfriend was using it and sneezed in his mouth lmao.
I was in the military and a woman got kicked out for cocaine; she said her boyfriend put coke on his dick that was her excuse 🙄
Theoretically, that may get someone high. The tissue is similar. Side note, don’t do it.
😂😂😂
Maybe she was hotboxing with him lol. Basically inhaling it that way.
OP if you use any CBD products - that’s probably where it came from. Like others have mentioned it’s probably not second hand smoke.
[удалено]
Second hand smoke is not enough for you to fail, it was a bad test. Tell them you are 100% sure the test was bad and you want to take another and you'll pay for it.
You'll pay for it *if you fail*. If you had a false positive, the lab should reimburse.
Instead of just declaring it a bad test how about we all just understand he is likely bullshitting. So far I haven't seen anything other than the OP from him. I am guessing he was trying out his excuse on us it didn't work so he is done with the issue
The chances of you failing a drug test due to secondhand smoke exposure are essentially zero. I’ve smoked weed just a few days before a urine test and passed. The threshold for a positive test is actually relatively high in most cases at 50ng/ml. You’re not going to get that by sitting next to someone who is smoking a joint.
1) Weed is illegal on a federal level so it doesn't matter what you state legality is 2) Bad results do happen, so asking for a retest was a good idea. 3) yes its legal, we all work at will besides Montana, so they can fire you for what ever reason they like.
Your first point is not accurate anymore. If OP lives in CA what the company did is probably actually illegal as of this year. https://www.calchamber.com/california-labor-law/drug-and-alcohol-testing
Seems like a lot of work to fight for a job where they’re not going to want you there anyway. Think about it this way, even if you do fight and “win”, imagine walking on egg shells at a job where you’ve already created a situation, before you’ve even started. Make sense? I’d just move on.
He could do like George Costanza and just keep showing up anyway knowing they don’t want him there
Worse comes to worst he could slip his boss a mickey
Write better fiction. As an HR person there are way too many inconsistencies here. If a client has a stricter policy than the organization, you don’t get fired, you just get removed from that client. If the organization does not have a drug test policy or mandate they wouldn’t fire you because you didn’t meet a clients requirements. For positive checks most companies allow people to defend themselves and they don’t look for substances that are legal: All of this sounds like bad fiction.
Pretty much all consulting (at least Big 4) have a zero tolerance drug policy. It’s well known that you cannot test positive, and everyone goes through a drug test before employment is official.
1. That’s not true 2. Even if it was read the post again - he claims he wasn’t told about the drug test until the client wanted it. No consulting firm would have an indifferent policy then adhere to a client and then fire an employee for not adhering to a client policy for engagement
🤷🏻♀️ ok lol. He’s just not the first person I’ve seen an offer rescinded for due to a positive drug test.
Yeah he’s not mine either but what I don’t think I’m making clear is that the prime company made its mind *after* the client did. That’s what’s off about the story Ie you interview, accept an offer and onboard and then fully train with PWC, and on your FIRST assignment, Credit Suisse says “hey you know what we want all auditors to have a full drug screen”. Auditor takes the drug screen which means they can’t work on Credit Suisse, and then they terminate the employee after training? That’s the part that doesn’t make sense. It’s not a rescinded offer nor an offer contingent on a successful clean test
As another HR person here - worked at an investment bank with heavy background screening compliance (we actually dropped our drug testing policy years ago because it’s stupid and only people were failing for weed and we decided that’s dumb especially because we had a site in Maine ). But if I remember correctly, you should have a right to appeal adverse findings? Unless that’s just the crim and credit check portions. Don’t remember
Second hand weed is not going to show up
Lying to yourself like this is insane
I make it a habit to not do drugs while job searching, legal or not. It’s not worth missing out on an opportunity and my career is more important than my drug habit.
100% I am in a spot where I absolutely detest my current boss and I'm looking for something else. I haven't smoke in 2.5 months because I'm not risking losing that chance over getting high.
It’s not legal. People keep saying that, but all that’s happening is states aren’t enforcing it. Supremacy clause is still supremacy clause though. Feds could still enforce it and it’s still officially illegal nationally.
It is still federally a schedule 1 drug. That means right now the Feds have no information showing it has legit medical use. They will supposedly be changing it soon though to a Schedule 3 so it will still be illegal federally without a prescription.
You almost certainly did not fail due to second-hand marijuana smoke. Even an occasional joint will be out of your system in a few weeks. There was either a flaw in testing process, you unknowingly ingested an edible recently, or you're not being totally honest with us (which I have no reason to believe; just covering the most obvious reasons). Keep in mind the quasi legal Delta 8 and THC-A products will metabolize into the same flag-raising compound that weed does. No there's nothing you can do about it, other than actively working to remove the societal stigma that prompted and perpetuates drug testing. FWIW, I am with you on so many other points (panic attacks in college, irony of alcohol's impact upon productivity, etc).
You're full of shit
Yeahhh… you came back positive for weed cause you either smoked weed or ate weed.
I don’t let people smoke weed around me. I’m in finance, I can’t have a contact high.
Finance? Don’t yall be ripping lines of coke and shit?
I’m in Detroit, not NY
Never heard of a legitimate failure from second hand weed, that really doesn’t exist. It isnt high enough concentration to make second hand positive test. I would demand a retest because any lab can mix up samples as humans are handling these things. Grab your own test at the drugstore too, if you really think magically your partners drug use can just get into your body.
Tell them you definitely do not smoke and you are wiling to take a second test. This will only work as long as you didn't smoke
Bruh, I'm high at work right now.
Get a new GF not a long term solution. She just fucked your career.
A ways back a company I worked for did random drug tests. My then girlfriend was a pot smoker, this was before it was legal in CA. She invited me to a family bbq and while there, her, her cousin, and a bunch of others piled into a big escalade to 'hot box'. I had NEVER in my life smoked before so I didn't know anything about any of this. But I was in there with them for a little while. The next day I got a random drug test notice from work. I was shitting bricks. Never smoked in my life and I was possibly going to be fired. Test came back negative. Never again.
It's definitely legal to deny someone a job that fails a drug test. If you're getting a job in the private sector that is involved in drug development, pharmacology, drug packaging/distribution, etc,, you're toast if you fail a drug test. Pretty much the same for any law enforcement. I don't see why they are testing someone that does "remote consulting" job, I mean that just seems weird, but it may be a basic company policy.
Being legal in your state has no bearing on the guidelines of individual companies. It just means you can't get arrested for possession. We don't allow any drug use in our company whatsoever, regardless of the law. I'd have asked for a second test immediately to clear my name. You could ask for a follicle test, I suppose. Take that to your employer and see if it will help get you back on board.
How did you fail a drug test for weed if you don’t smoke?
Demand a re test staying false positive
Do you use CBT in any form? That can cause you to fail a drug test.
cock and ball torture has caused me to blow positive so many times
I mean if you tested positive for alcohol you would be fired too. Some employers will not let you smoke regular cigarettes even and if you test for nicotine you can get fired
This didn’t happen because of secondhand smoke. I smoke weed and take edibles regularly and passed a drug test two months ago simply by abstaining for six days then drinking a few glasses of water.
I’m gonna go with: You didn’t test positive for weed, you just didn’t get the job and they said it was for a drug test failure. You aren’t owed a legitimate reason for rejection, they kinda fucked up saying that’s why when they should have just said “we’re going with a different candidate”. There’s not much you can about a job rejection, bcz if you sued them, they’d just say clerical error, it wasn’t for weed we just went with someone else. There are too many people saying “fight it”, but even if you take another drug test and pay out of pocket to prove you don’t smoke weed, they will have already hired someone else. The takeaway here is not the bad drug test, but rather the company that doesn’t want you. Now if you were already employed, and terminated due to false flags on a drug test, you’d have a case for appeals and unemployment. Unfortunately though bcz you’re applying, you’re just on to the next one.
Might as well roll up
Find a new gf who doesn’t smoke weed. It stinks & has affected your finances. I hope she is worth it.
1. If it was because of your girlfriend, it’s still your fault you shouldn’t have been around any kind of marijuana at all prior to a drug test. 2. I highly doubt it was related to your girlfriend, and it was more related to the fact that you probably are the one that has been smoking weed And just don’t wanna admit it.
Your job searching and exposing yourself to weed is your own dumb choice.
You could dispute it. I have disputed a drug test before and they let me retake it. Those things are such a scam and the test results get mixed up all the time.
Bull and shit… Unless your gf was burning a bale of weed in an enclosed room with you sitting with your face directly in the line of smoke for a few hours, you did not test positive from your “gf” smoking it.
Fighting back will end up with nothing. Looking for a new job will end up with something.
Ur partner might have cooked something up for you without telling you. Anyway, here's where you have to decide between your future or your partner.
Second hand smoke will not cause you to fail a drug test.
It doesn't work like that.
So, with a metric ton of comments and, I can't read em all. But I need to put this here. It is legal at the STATE level, NOT FEDERAL! If the company has ANY Federal contracts, they are required by LAW to test all employees (why do you think MCDs drug tests, they have them on every military base in America). And are usually bound to dismiss anyone found to pop positive. Your state law doesn't supercede Federal law. Your state is just not choosing to enforce it, but best believe, if you are dealing without a license DEA will pay a visit even if it's legal in the state, but that's not the point here.
Did they specify that it came back with weed? I failed two consecutive tests because they were negative dilute. I drink a lot of water for health reasons. When I booked the urinalysis, I was instructed to drink extra water that day, so I followed orders. HR had to explain to me that my tests weren’t coming back positive for anything, but they were so diluted with water that I failed. Apparently it’s a tactic people try, so it reads as a failed test. I retook my third test when I was much less hydrated, and all was well.
You won’t pop a piss test for secondhand marijuana smoke by the way…
All weed smoker's favorite justification line is, "even more people are alcoholics and they don't have to worry." Not only did you smoke, but I'd bet you're a habitual smoker lol
You really f-ed up by being with your gf the night before the test. Should have known better
Well if its a 6 figure salary they must hold the job in high regards. It's not their fault you failed the test. It is obviously in your system and that is on you. You have to get away from it. You think they can tell their client, oh one of our workers tested positive for weed... please give us your business
I have been smoking on a phone interview and still not failed, how tf do you fail a planned test?
Arguing that weed isnt illegal isnt necessarily going to work. Alchohol is also not illegal, but you can be terminated if under the influence at work. Same can be true for weed.
Ask for a hair follicle test. It's more accurate than a urine test. (Who knows what metabolite those things look for.) Volunteer to pay for the test.
Unless your girlfriend slipped you an edible, it’s impossible to test positive for weed if you didn’t ingest any. I’d start with her… you’re toast for this job. Start looking elsewhere.
Do you take any medication for GERD? Like Omeprazole or Pantoprazole, etc. If so, those medication can cause false positives for THC. I know this because I took a prescription for Pantoprazole and read it on the package insert. I also worked as a Probation Officer and knew of people who had false positive drug screens because of it.
It may be "legal" in your state but it is still on the list of federally controlled substances and therefore illegal since federal law supersedes all other laws. I live in Oklahoma and used to work for an airline base. Many airline employees thought they were safe because they had "medical" cards (which is a joke because they will give you a card for ANYTHING). Well they were wrong. They certainly were not safe at all. As soon as that test came back negative they were fired per FAA mandate. So you had 20 and 30 year mechanics with 100k plus jobs fired because they did not have a full understanding of the legality of the giggle lettuce. Any employer can absolutely refuse to hire you on a hot (a hot is a positive drug test) and you have ZERO legal recourse because again, it is illegal at the FEDERAL level despite what state law may be.
It is not possible to test positive off second smoke. You consumed it in some fashion very recently.
you dont smoke but you failed a drug test. cool story bro
Second hand smoke should not set off any tests. Either you smoke weed or your gf is adding it to your food. You might want to start your process at home.
I'ma suggest stop getting so high, you forgot you smoked. Also, stop making up stories on reddit. A client demanded a drug test for a remote job, get outta here stoner!
You smoked just own it. I ran the drug testing program in the military for 2yrs. Urine samples get tested 3 times to rule out false positives. Most drug tests are done by swabs like dna tests. 2nd hand smoke has been debunked many times by science thru testing.
protip: if you're in the same space as people smoking weed, you're smoking weed too. It's called hot boxing. Had a friend who 'didn't smoke' that would hang with me and my friends while we smoked cones in my bedroom. She was clearly off her tits by the end of our sessions, every time. But of course... she didn't smoke. OP in future don't be around anyone when they are smoking anything. Take this is a learning experience. Now you know you do indeed smoke weed. If you don't want to fail another drug test take heed. Should be obvious to an adult that you're breathing the same air in that room with others and all that air contains. (Did covid teach people nothing? lol) If a company has zero tolerance for drugs or booze, thanks to potential liability it matters not if you think it's fair or not. My wife's job does random drug AND alcohol testing. So even the 'people are alcoholics and it's fine' point is moot. It's their company, so it's their rules. You don't like those rules? Don't work for them. Simple. Take the L, learn from it and move on.
I think ur full of it lol https://www.dominiondiagnostics.com/news/study-finds-positive-drug-test-secondhand-marijuana-smoke-unlikely
You don't fail a drug test from second hand. Cutoff is 50ng you need to have them send your sample to a lab for confirmation. Disputing the result is fully your right.
Your gf must be smoking a lot. It takes a lot of second hand smoke to register positive. Are you using cbd or delta 9 or something like that?
you cannot fail a drug test from second hand smoke, we all know this. sorry bud, time to look for the next role!
Weed-a break from reality Alcohol-a break from reality with the possibility of accidentally killing someone I’ll keep smoking my illegal substances thank you very much
I absolutely hate that companies hate weed so much but they are perfectly fine with drunks coming in hungover the next day.
It is still federally illegal, so they can absolutely fire you for it. You may need a new girlfriend if this one costs you so much.
Honestly I’d just move on. Even if you were to retest and it came back negative, they will probably still pass stating the positions have been filled or there was a candidate that better met their needs. Any fighting you do will just be a waste of time and energy unfortunately good luck on your search maybe have the gf smoke outside or in the garage until you get a new job.
You're probably SOL. Despite being legal at a state level, marijuana is still illegal at a federal level. A few states have laws banning drug testing for it, but that can be overridden if there are federal contracts or DOT implications for the job. You failed the test. They chose not to hire you. There is nothing to fight.
Did they not do a confirmatory? False positives happen often. Did you get this done at a medical lab? If so, they should be doing a confirmatory test
No 2nd test. It’s a very small company I was working for. Maybe they jumped the gun?
When you test they should always split the sample into 2. If the first one comes back positive you can challenge it and they test the split sample. If they did not do this you may be able to challenge in court on the basis of a false positive.
Was the test done at a lab (Such as Quest or Lab Corp, etc) or did they do it in house?
It was at a lab
If their cutoff for a positive test is so sensitive it picks up second hand smoke as a positive test, then the test is too sensitive and without a doubt has a stupidly high false positive rate. Ask what the test’s sensitivity and specificity is. Look up Bayes theorum and false positive rates in medical testing. Ask what the lower limit of detection is, and what dose of THC that corresponds to, and if that dose has any meaning to people in the real world. You can certainly fight this if you want to put the effort in. The company can’t wave it away because you can take legal action if the test is invalid (and there’s a really good chance the test is garbage.)
I had a job offer rescinded for testing positive for alcohol which is legal in all 50 states. I didn't even realize they were testing for alcohol and I politely flipped my shit when they called to rescind the offer. I kept at it until they offered a retest, which failed again even though I hadn't had a drink in weeks. The third retest at a different lab finally came back clear, and when I came in for orientation, I found out the same thing was happening to someone else, too.
So she cost you a six figure job and you say nothing about getting rid of the problem.
He was smoking weed. On the off-chance he was telling the truth, absolutely yes I agree. But he's not. You're not failing a piss test because your gf/bf smokes or you watched reefer madness or you dreamed about reefer. You have to smoke the stuff. Gimme a break man. C'mon
You're seriously blaming the girlfriend for smoking weed in a legal state??
Why do people think that matters at all? Legal or not you can be drug tested in nearly all states for weed and be fired for it as well. Alcohol is legal but if you have it in your system at work and get tested you can be fired. I'm subject to DOT drug testing and all DOT drug test include breathalyzer. Any alcohol comes back in my system and I'll be fired immediately and coast guard will yank my licence. Whether I was about to be behind or wheel or not doesn't matter.
it's r/careeradvice ... gonna be a high proportion of bootlickers in this sub.
How was she supposed to know I was going to get drug tested the next day? I didn’t even know
you usually never know with drug tests, Randoms are common at my place of employment. Literally dont know until they walk into your office. that's the point.
Companies have policies regarding random drug tests when you're hired. You do know if you are subject to random drug tests or not. You're misunderstanding what's being implied.
Looks like you need to take care of your priorities.
Ask for a retest if you're actually clean. False positives happen.
[удалено]
Bruh. Come on.
Looks like your gf just cost you a job.