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Synthetic Cannabis Products Causing Workplace Dangers

Tuesday 5 July 2011, 1:19PM

By Instep Limited

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Readily available legal synthetic cannabis products are posing significant dangers for workplaces and workers, says one of New Zealand’s leading workplace behavioural healthcare companies.

Instep Limited’s chief executive Matthew Beattie says, “The rapidly escalating use of Kronic, Spice, Dream, K2 and other synthetic cannabis products now has major implications in the New Zealand workplace.

“Not only have employers a responsibility to keep the workplace safe, but also they have the onus of individual worker safety – helping the employee to look after themselves. Synthetic cannabis is currently a legal drug and its use poses significant risks to the workplace. For an employer it is not about legal or illegal, it is about safety and managing workplace risk – after all, employers are expected to manage the impact of alcohol in the workplace. We believe that employers need to take a strong position on the issue of synthetic drugs at work.”

Kirk Hardy managing director of the NZ Drug Detection Agency agrees with Instep’s concerns. “We work very closely with high-risk industries such as aviation, transport, civil engineering and mining companies with their employee drug testing programmes. The negative effects of Kronic and other similar drugs have become very visible in the last nine months. Testing for these legal synthetic cannabis products has only recently become available and we’re now seeing more corporates wishing to include these legal drugs in their on-site workplace drug testing regimes.”

The effects of taking synthetic cannabinoid products mimic the effects traditional cannabis with users experiencing euphoria and paranoia. However, Kronic and others are anecdotally known to be much more potent than illegal cannabis.

Kirk Hardy says that he’s seen up to 20 times stronger effects from Kronic users. “Employers need to draw a line in the sand now. Using the analogy of alcohol – which is of course also readily accessible - employers must take a stand.”

A recent number of random specimens taken from a specific sector in one region of New Zealand that NZDDA sent overseas for synthetic cannabis testing returned a 30% positive rate for the synthetic drug.

Kirk Hardy says that this provides real evidence that there are people in the workplace who are willing to put themselves and others at risk of being seriously hurt or killed from using these types of drugs.

“In the industries we test you don’t necessarily get a second chance if things go wrong. Employees have to concentrate and just can’t afford to be at risk of being impaired. We are talking safety-sensitive industries and if someone is not on their game, so to speak, you are going to have a much higher chance of someone being killed or seriously injured in a workplace accident and that is not something you can take chances on.

“We just hope that this acts as a deterrent to others not to use synthetics, or other substances legal or illegal, that pose a serious workplace safety issue,” said Mr Hardy.

Instep’s Matthew Beattie says that although the NZDDA testing results at this point should not be used as indicative of a trend “the figures don’t look good.”

Instep offers some guidance for employers. “It is not just about compliance with health and safety in employment legislation. It’s also about best practice for employee wellbeing. Employers are legally required to provide a safe working environment. We recommend that businesses alter their workplace policies to include the ability to test for the presence of synthetic drugs, and this will include a consultation process. For some this will involve unions represented in their workplace,” said Matthew Beattie.

“Instep also strongly recommends that businesses continue to educate and inform their staff about drugs - legal and illegal, including alcohol - so good choices are made and their workplaces are safe. Businesses should monitor suspected employee drug use and test where appropriate, and then make sure they provide a supportive environment for employees who are found to have a drug or alcohol problem,” says Mr Beattie.

On 17 June, the Hon Peter Dunne, Associate Minister of Health, announced amendments would be made in the next few weeks to the Misuse of Drugs Act. This would make synthetic cannabis a Class D drug, making it a restricted substance.

Kronic and other named synthetic drugs that mimic the effect of cannabis were banned in New South Wales from t1 July 2011 under the NSW Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act. A ban on the use of synthetic cannabis will come into effect seven days later. Western Australia recently banned synthetic cannabis products, with other Australian states considering similar action.