Florida Expungement
David Weisselberger
January 20, 2025
Drug testing in the workplace is a crucial part of maintaining a safe and compliant environment for employees. However, you might wonder what will happen if you fail a drug test. Does it have a long-term impact on background checks?
Failed drug tests won’t appear in any criminal background checks in Florida, however, there are still circumstances wherein it may influence your perceived employment opportunities. Therefore, understanding their implications is important to help employers and employees navigate these situations effectively.
Employers have different ways for drug testing to detect the presence of substances in a candidate’s or employee’s body. These could be as follows:
If you happen to fail a drug test while you are employed, there are various consequences that you’d be facing but it all depends on the company’s policy about drug use and Florida law, some of which are the following:
Employers must always document these actions appropriately and comply with all relevant regulations.
The answer to this question is NO. Failed drug tests do not necessarily appear on any background checks because they are not considered to be a criminal record. However, there are still certain exceptions for this:
Job seekers and employers alike must understand these nuances as it will help them both ways.
While it is not completely legal for previous employers to legally disclose a drug result of employees, there are certain circumstances wherein they can do so.
Most employers who privately own their companies are not allowed to disclose any drug test results on the background check of an employee. However, if the desired position is government-owned, employers are required to know whether or not the employee has a history of failing a drug test, and they can legally seek this information.
If the employee has been involved in a criminal conviction because of drugs, or the drug result is part of a criminal investigation, these records will be publicly available and can be viewed by anyone, including employers who want to do a background check.
The law of Florida does not allow the disclosure of failed drug test results unless there is written consent signed by the person himself. However, industries such as transportation and other safety-sensitive positions may verify previous drug test results during the hiring process.
While medical marijuana is deemed legal in Florida, this still does not guarantee that you have any job protection.
Employers have different policies about the use of marijuana and drugs. Even though a medical marijuana card is issued for a patient, there are a lot of employers who disregard that one due to their strict adherence to their drug-free workplace policies. Thus, having a marijuana card, in some cases, could still cause some consequences.
In connection to this, the employees have the right to request an accommodation under the ADA or Florida Medical Marijuana Law but not all roles can be accommodated by this. Again, there are safety-sensitive positions that will still require strict adherence to drug test results.
To maintain understanding between employers and employees, both should engage in open regulation and clarify these rights and expectations.
You can be disqualified from your employment if you fail a drug test. Certain occupations require passing the test as a condition for the job. However, during a drug test, the employer must follow policies that are set by federal law and state guidelines. This will ensure that the results of the test are just and fair for all candidates.
Each candidate has the right to contest or to explain their side about their drug test result, especially because there are occurrences of false positives at times. By doing this, the candidates are given a chance to correct any misunderstanding or error about the test.
In Florida, the results of the drug tests are influenced by the employer’s policies and the role requirements. While employers have the right to determine how a result should impact the hiring decision, it is important to note that they too should also operate by complying with the boundaries of rules and regulations set by the state about drug testing.
If you are struggling to get a job because of your failed drug tests or other similar issues, You can seek help at EraseTheCase. EraseTheCase will navigate background checks and clear you from any negative records. Although failed drug tests are not commonly included in any background reports, addressing these kinds of challenges will still improve your chances of landing a good employment opportunity in the future.
