Trending Topics

FDNY ceases random, scheduled and pre-employment testing for marijuana

According to Local 854, like the department’s alcohol policy, there will be testing for cause if a member is thought to be impaired on the job

FDNYmemo71322.png

By FireRescue1 staff

NEW YORK — The FDNY announced on Wednesday that it will no longer test for marijuana at random or pre-employment screening.

The Uniformed Fire Officers Association (IAFF Local 854) tweeted the news, sharing a picture of an FDNY Bureau of Operations memo distributed to all boroughs from Chief of Operations John Esposito.

The memo reads in full: “The New York City Law Department has issued guidance that prohibits adverse employment actions on off-duty marijuana usage. This will change pre-employment, random and scheduled drug testing policies for marijuana. Use of any substance while at work still remains strictly prohibited. Guidance on these changes will be disseminated in the next 14 days.”

FDNYmemo71322.png

UFOA noted that, like the fire department’s alcohol policy, there will be testing for “cause” if a member is thought to be impaired.

Trending
San Francisco firefighters spent nearly three hours searching through a garbage truck before rescuing a man and transporting him to a trauma center
The campaign, “The Sacrifice Didn’t End on 9/11,” runs through Sept. 30 and coincides with the 25-year remembrance of the 9/11 terrorist attacks
A mayday was called during a Rowan County-area house fire that injured three firefighters, while a fire engine was heavily damaged in a separate highway crash hours later
The FDNY added 36 names to its World Trade Center Memorial Wall, bringing to 438 the number of fire and EMS members honored after dying from illnesses linked to Ground Zero

Related content