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Drug Testing Laws in Colorado 2022: Everything We Know

Drug Testing Laws in Colorado 2022: Everything We Know

• Uritox

Unlike few other states in the U.S., Colorado does not have a statute governing workplace drug testing. The employer in Colorado can conduct a drug test for pre-employment or random drug testing for employees without affecting your right to privacy.

Table of Contents:

CPS/Child Protective Services Drug Testing Laws in Colorado

CPS in Colorado considers child protection as their primary concern. They make sure that recreational use of some illegal drugs like MMJ and cannabis should not impede child safety.

Anyone in Colorado can report child abuse in their family or neighborhood. CPS agencies receive reports of child abuse encounters on varying degrees of urgency. They establish priorities based on the evidence and information received from the report source and specify a high-priority reaction within 1 hour or 24 hours. Lower priority responses are dealt with from 24 hours to 14 days.

How does the CPS drug test work in Colorado?

CPS agencies in Colorado have a set of principles that aim to protect the welfare of the children and provide them a secure and safe lifestyle at any cost.

Child Protective Services constitutes a specialized set of services that strengthens the ability of families to safeguard and look after their children. The main motive is to support the intactness of families by providing services to stabilize the family situation and strengthen the parents/guardians/caretakers in fulfilling their parental responsibilities to their children. Intervention is necessary with respect for the family's integrity, knowledge of the legal base for action, and sound social work practice.

The following principles of CPS agencies in Colorado are

  • Teenagers and youth deserve an environment free from child abuse or child neglect, preferably by their families of origin, by providing sufficient efforts to strengthen the family unit through the requirement of in-home services.
  • Placement shall be considered when there is proof that leaving the child in the home would jeopardize the protection of the child or community. Appropriate undertakings shall be made to prevent placement or reunite the family as soon as possible if removal is essential. The child's safety is the paramount concern during the entire process.
  • A tribunal may determine the requirement of reasonable efforts; otherwise, reasonable efforts shall protect and reunify families. Appropriate and culturally competent services that facilitate safety benefit the families, children, and youngsters in their own homes and out-of-home placements.
  • Teenagers and youth separated from the care of their parents have their right to request for their extended family members as placement resources.
  • Consideration of the child's age, race, ethnicity, culture, language, religion, and other needs shall guide the intention of all services provided, including out-of-home and adoptive placements.

What type of drug tests does CPS use in Colorado?

CPS in Colorado may prefer urine or mouth swab drug tests for the parents/guardians alleged of their child abuse. Sometimes, the CPS may take hair drug tests for confirmation as the court recommends it. If you are a parent and are about to undergo a drug test, make sure that you pass your drug test by knowing about the drug levels in your body by using trusted home-based urine and saliva drug test kits.

What is the best option for a CPS hair follicle drug test in Colorado?

The best option for CPS hair follicle drug test in Colorado is hair drug test kit. This kit can identify all significant drugs and their concentration in your hair strands quickly and accurately.

Drug testing relates to the use of biological sources, such as urine, saliva, sweat, hair, breath, blood, and meconium, to know particular substances or their metabolites in an individual’s system. The most significant way to identify a substance use disorder or determine if a child is in danger for maltreatment or neglect is by conducting drug tests to identify the metabolites in the system.

The best hair follicle drug test is observed by a five, ten, or 12-panel hair follicle drug test. A hair follicle drug test can identify the individual's drug use consumed before 90 days.

Drug testing camps require at least 1.5 inches of hair to execute the hair drug test. The hair is generally taken from the head, but the testing centers can use hair from the chest or leg if the donor does not have head hair.

Newborn Drug Testing Laws in Colorado

Colorado law requests the hospitals and medical professionals to report about the presence of drugs in newborn children. Colorado law considers the positive test for illegal drugs in newborns as child abuse and recommends the CPS to take necessary action.

According to sources, in the 1990s, Colorado babies were born with opioids in their body and were given doses of methadone or morphine.

The child welfare department has started working more closely with local hospitals to ensure drug-abused babies and their families receive enough assistance, including in-home nurse visits, drug treatment, or parenting lessons. They provide immense care and revive them from drug addiction.

Colorado officials may remove the child from the parent if the baby was positively drug tested, and the newborn would be sent to foster care.

Do Teachers get Drug Tested in Colorado?

Under the current 2022 law, Colorado teachers are not obliged or compelled to take a drug test when hired. Still, if reasonable suspicion is brought to the school management’s attention, you have to take a drug test as per the management's guidelines. Refusing the random drug test in schools may be considered positive for drugs, and the schools may remove you from the job.

Companies or Agencies that skyDrug Test in Colorado

FedEx: FedEx is an international shipping solution delivering packages across the world. They are the fastest-growing delivery services. A urine sample has to be produced at the recruitment site right after you leave the warehouse tour. Companies like FedEx hire seasonal packers. However, the packers don't have to undergo a drug test. 

PetSmart: PetSmart is a private American chain of pet stores that trades pet products and services. They provide pet daycare, grooming, training, and also the adoption of dogs. They require a drug test at the beginning of employment and whenever you are involved in an accident. The pre-employment tests have to be cleared to earn a place in the company. They perform a urinary drug test and conduct a background check before hiring you.

Amazon: Amazon will no longer test their employees for MMJ during pre-employment, as many states in the U.S. have legalized medicinal use of MMJ. But they conduct a urine drug test for other illegal drugs in some of their branches.

Walmart: Yes, Walmart requires a drug test before being employed. The testing is more often done at a local clinic assigned by the store you're applying to. Walmart workers in the night shift maintenance must have to take a random drug test.

Lowe’s: According to a trusted source in Colorado, the hiring process at Lowe's typically includes two or more interviews, an aptitude test, a background check, and a drug test.

Top 10 Jobs in Colorado that Do Not Require a Drug Test

Colorado employers are given rights to drug test employees either by random drug screening tests or a scheduled testing program. Employers can also drug test during pre-employment drug screening, even after making an offer of acceptance on employment. Some employment opportunities in Colorado do not require a drug test.

  1. Receptionist: A receptionist is a person who attends to every person and guides them accordingly. Being a receptionist requires various skills and decisive thoughts and not a drug test.

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  1. Photography: Photography is an art that is a core category of talent. Living under the beauty of Colorado tends to make them click pictures. Passion turning into a source of a job is a dream for people. Despite any situation, the struggle to get a perfect shot is a drug-free concept. Product photography and elopement photography is wondrous.

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  1. Event Managers: Relating to the industry, it is best to hang on to the details we are trying to provide the client and satisfy them. Pandemic or not, there are event managers who have digitized their services. 
  2. Food Service Worker: Food being the greater hand of life requires a series of works involving cleaning and sanitizing food, clearing the refrigerator, handling sanitized hardware and cookware, scrubbing stains, sweep and mop floors, and heavy-duty feeding the dishwasher, etc. Some places require a drug test for these jobs, whereas specific ones in Colorado don't.

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  1. Freelance Worker: Nothing is equal to being the boss to yourself. A freelancer is a person who works for themselves rather than for any company. They are ultimately self-employed and take up work on a contractual basis. Being the boss does not need to hand over a drug test sample.
  2. Housekeeping: States like Colorado have a high demand for professional housekeepers. A housekeeper connects politeness, hospitality, attitude, communication skills, punctuality, and reliability to take the home under control and do the necessary. If any person with this great attitude is ready to glue on, a drug test is nothing to prove.

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  1. Painter: A painter removes paint, scrapes the walls, sandpapering or applying paint remover, putties or spackles holes and cracks, and remodel the house to another dimension. Skill-based works cannot be a burden on drug tests causing more spending. Best craftsmanship is all that's expected.

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  1. Online Tutor: There is a high need for Online Education tutors, especially in the United States and worldwide. And since working with these individuals is performed online, there is no need to undergo drug testing.
  2. Fashion Designer: Fashion designing is all about innovations in the fashion field and does not involve a drug test. The primary focus is generally on creating unique, distinctive, and marketable looks in industry fashion shows, client meetings, or other opportunities.
  3. Cosmetologist: Hair Stylists, nail technicians, and other beauty specialists work in a field where drug tests are pretty uncommon. While some high-end and branded cosmetic companies may drug test you. If you start your entrepreneurship as an independent cosmetologist, you do not require a drug test.

Colorado Employee Drug Testing Laws

According to legal rights, Colorado employers or the forthcoming employer can demand you to take a drug test. The law also protects the right of the employee or pre-employment candidate by putting some reasonable impediments in the employer's liberty in conducting the drug test.

Federal law places few barriers on employer drug testing, such as

  • The federal government requires testing by employers under a few cases like the safety-sensitive industries. The federal law doesn't seem to expect otherwise or forbid drug tests.
  • The Colorado Court of Appeals had legislated a rule that an employee cannot demand a legal claim for wrongful termination if he is fired for failing or denying to take a drug test.
  • Typically speaking, if you fail a pre-employment drug test, the company may legally prohibit hiring you. On the continuous failure of a drug test during employment, your employer may lawfully halt your employment or stave off you from being promoted.

What are the Consequences If You Fail a Drug Test in Colorado?

If you fail your pre-employment or random drug testing, there are chances that your employer may not hire you. Some companies may hire candidates with a criminal drug history, but it may differ based on their company policies. Colorado law does not explicitly require private and public organizations to conduct drug tests during employment. If you are applying for a transportation job, you may face your drug test per DOT guidelines.

What Happens If You Fail a Drug Test During the Probation in Colorado?

If you fail your drug test during probation in Colorado, it is considered a violation, and there are chances that you may be grounded. If possible, your probation officer may recommend the court extend your jail time. If your probation is revoked, you will likely receive additional fines, penalties, and even jail time.

Probation periods usually fall between one and five years. The grown-ups or adults and juveniles under probation can live an everyday life if they abide by the terms and conditions set by the court. In cases of non-violent crimes and misdemeanors, you may get a chance to avert jail or prison time if you have already entered detention.

Pre-Employment Drug Testing Laws in Colorado

Colorado drug testing laws that have to be taken into consent are

  1. The employees of Colorado may rely on national law rather than state law for restricting weed in the workplace and for expelling employees who test positive for MMJ. It makes no difference that the recreational use of pot is legitimate in the norms of Colorado.
  2. Employees tend to lose half of their workers’ compensation fund replacement privileges if they test positive on a drug test. Employers may require that employees get drug-tested either on random drug-testing or by following any workplace accident. If the results are positive for cannabis, MMJ, or amphetamine use in the employee’s system, Colorado law reckons that he/she injured him/herself due to intoxication. Unless the worker overcomes this presumption by clear and convincing evidence, the worker’s remuneration replacement benefits will prevail halved.
  3. Even though Colorado employers may fire workers for failing a drug test, workers may still have other grounds to sue in light of circumstances such as invasion of privacy, disability discrimination, and discrimination on class, race, sex, gender, etc.

Final Words

Colorado state law is constructed to spread peace among the nation, eliminating unnecessary medications and illegal drugs. People of the U.S. need to assist the state government in abiding by the laws and prevent misusing the relaxations in the law.

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