Victoria's Legislative Council has passed a motion calling on the state government to act on recommendations from last year's parliamentary inquiry into workplace drug testing, amid growing concern that current testing regimes put medicinal cannabis patients at a disadvantage.
The motion was introduced by Legalise Cannabis MP David Ettershank, who argued that existing alcohol and other drugs testing frameworks are built around detecting the presence of substances rather than determining whether a worker is actually impaired.
Ettershank pointed out that employees with valid medicinal cannabis prescriptions can test positive for THC long after consumption and well after any impairment has passed, exposing them to disciplinary proceedings or dismissal.
"The detection of trace elements of a drug is not equivalent to impairment, and those trace elements can stay in one's system for weeks," he said.
"This is harming workers, causing uncertainty for employers and needlessly jeopardising Victorian workplaces."
Fellow Legalise Cannabis MP Rachel Payne cited survey data from 487 participants gathered during the 2024 inquiry, which showed that some patients were abandoning medicinal cannabis in favour of other prescribed drugs out of fear of workplace consequences.
"Employers need to meet employees where they are at, have an open mind about why they are being prescribed medicinal cannabis and discuss how appropriate accommodations can be made," she said.
"The survey found that a failure to do so leads almost half of people to use other medications to replace medicinal cannabis.
"For some this means instead of using medicinal cannabis to manage pain, they are using other medications, like benzodiazepines, which have a much greater range of side effects."
The motion passed by 20 votes to 13, calling on the government to advance the seven key recommendations contained in the report, which was released last August.
Those recommendations include amendments to relevant legislation and updates to WorkSafe guidance — sections of which Ettershank noted had not been revised since 2009, despite medicinal cannabis becoming legal in 2016.
The government has yet to formally respond to the inquiry's findings, and no timeline for doing so has been provided.
State government MPs voted in favour of the motion but characterised the issues as complicated and indicated the recommendations remain under active review.
"As much as we would love to have had a quicker response… it is more important that we get this work right rather than rush it," Labor MP Michael Galea said.
Opposition MP Dr Renee Heath voted against the motion, and while she acknowledged the importance of protecting patients, she drew attention to the lack of a reliable test for THC-related impairment.
"Our recommendation is to immediately develop robust guidelines specific to Victoria for detecting and managing THC-related impairment in high-risk occupations, ensuring a balance between employee rights and workplace safety," she said.
The vote came in the wake of recent remarks by Federal Health Minister Mark Butler, who called for a review of workplace laws to keep pace with the expansion of prescribed medicinal cannabis.
"The first principle must be people should be supported through their medical treatment," he said on Channel Nine's Sunrise program.
"There will obviously be questions about using heavy equipment and the like, but I think it is time to have that debate about updating our laws."
Legalise Cannabis Victoria party manager Mira Fraser described the outcome as a positive development for patients across the state.
"It puts the onus back on the Victorian Government to make a decision and respond to the recommendations soon," she said.
