RI Supreme Court confirms 'low standard' for determining if employees are high

On May 29, 2020, the Rhode Island Supreme Court upheld a lower court decision finding an employer had "reasonable grounds" to believe its employee may be under the influence of a controlled substance and it could therefore fire him for refusing to take a drug test. It made no difference to the court that the employee carried a medical marijuana card or refused to take the test because of his medical marijuana usage—or even that he didn't exhibit physical signs normally associated with drug use (e.g., bloodshot eyes, slurred speech). According to the court, it was enough for the employer to show its managers' contemporaneous observations of the employee could reasonably lead them to believe he may be under the influence of a controlled substance.

Employee's 'weird' and 'odd' behavior raises suspicion

On March 5, 2018, Michael Colpitts, a supply driver for W.B. Mason Co., Inc., since July 2015, returned to the company's warehouse in Cranston unannounced in the middle of his shift. He sought out and found Christopher Santos, the warehouse manager, and jokingly stated, "Are you ready to fill this out?"

Santos didn't know why Colpitts had returned to the warehouse early or what he was talking about because he didn't hand him any form to fill out. Colpitts then explained he had suffered an injury to his wrist during his route.