07/11/2026
More Americans are testing positive for ma*****na in workplace drug tests, raising questions among employers over their usefulness in screening job candidates. 🔗 https://on.wsj.com/4yl1qd0
As legalized ma*****na spreads, its growing use is showing up in drug tests at some of the highest rates in years, according to new data from Quest Diagnostics, which conducted about eight million workforce drug tests in 2025. The share of urine tests that came back positive for the substance rose to 4.4% last year, up from 3.9% in 2021.
Hair tests, a less common method that can detect drug use much further back, as much as 90 days before, showed more widespread use. About 15% of workers screened that way tested positive for ma*****na, a nearly 60% jump from 2021. Random screenings were even higher at 21%.
With so many working Americans now using the drug—at least occasionally—testing positive is no longer the deal breaker to getting or keeping a job it once was. Outside of trucking, construction and other safety-sensitive industries, more employers say they have come to view ma*****na as akin to alcohol: not a red flag, as long as workers aren’t indulging on the clock.
And fewer employers are screening job candidates for ma*****na use at all, in part because it would make it tougher to find enough qualified candidates, said Todd Logsdon, a partner at employment law firm Fisher Phillips.
“I’ve had other employers tell me, ’If I test for that, I’m not gonna have any applicants,’” Logsdon said. “They’re being very choosy about which role they test for.”
