Workplace and Non-workplace Cannabis Use and the Risk of Workplace Injury: Findings from a Longitudinal Study of Canadian Workers

Overview

Journal Can J Public Health

Publisher Springer Nature

Specialty Public Health

Date 2023 Jul 31

PMID 37523062

Authors

Nancy Carnide

Victoria Landsman

Hyunmi Lee

Michael R Frone

Andrea D Furlan

Peter M Smith

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Objectives: Findings of previous studies examining the relationship between cannabis use and workplace injury have been conflicting, likely due to methodological shortcomings, including cross-sectional designs and exposure measures that lack consideration for timing of use. The objective was to estimate the association between workplace cannabis use (before and/or at work) and non-workplace use and the risk of workplace injury.

Methods: Canadian workers participating in a yearly longitudinal study (from 2018 to 2020) with at least two adjacent years of survey data comprised the analytic sample (n = 2745). The exposure was past-year workplace cannabis use (no past-year use, non-workplace use, workplace use). The outcome was past-year workplace injury (yes/no). Absolute risks and relative risks (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated between workplace and non-workplace cannabis use at one time point and workplace injury at the following time point. Models were adjusted for personal and work variables and were also stratified by whether respondents' jobs were safety-sensitive.

Results: Compared to no past-year cannabis use, there was no difference in workplace injury risk for non-workplace cannabis use (RR 1.09, 95%CI 0.83-1.44). However, workplace use was associated with an almost two-fold increased risk of experiencing a workplace injury (RR 1.97, 95%CI 1.32-2.93). Findings were similar for workers in safety-sensitive and non-safety-sensitive work.

Conclusion: It is important to distinguish between non-workplace and workplace use when considering workplace safety impacts of cannabis use. Findings have implications for workplace cannabis use policies and substantiate the need for worker education on the risks of workplace cannabis use.

Citing Articles

Cannabis use motives and associations with personal and work characteristics among Canadian workers: a cross-sectional study.

Carnide N, Chrystoja B, Lee H, Furlan A, Smith P J Occup Med Toxicol. 2024; 19(1):25.

PMID: 38872177 PMC: 11177395. DOI: 10.1186/s12995-024-00424-7.

An observational study of pain severity, cannabis use, and benefit expenditures in work disability.

Mustard C, Orchard C, Dobson K, Carnide N, Smith P Can J Public Health. 2023; 115(1):157-167.

PMID: 37843785 PMC: 10853146. DOI: 10.17269/s41997-023-00821-1.

References

Rotermann M, Langlois K . Prevalence and correlates of marijuana use in Canada, 2012. Health Rep. 2015; 26(4):10-5. View

Frone M . Predictors of overall and on-the-job substance use among young workers. J Occup Health Psychol. 2003; 8(1):39-54. DOI: 10.1037//1076-8998.8.1.39. View

Carnide N, Lee H, Landsman V, Frone M, Furlan A, Smith P . Cannabis use and workplace cannabis availability, perceptions and policies among Canadian workers: a comparison before and after the legalisation of non-medical cannabis. Occup Environ Med. 2022; . PMC: 9685684. DOI: 10.1136/oemed-2022-108316. View

Howard J, Osborne J . Cannabis and work: Need for more research. Am J Ind Med. 2020; 63(11):963-972. DOI: 10.1002/ajim.23170. View

Myran D, Staykov E, Cantor N, Taljaard M, Quach B, Hawken S . How has access to legal cannabis changed over time? An analysis of the cannabis retail market in Canada 2 years following the legalisation of recreational cannabis. Drug Alcohol Rev. 2021; 41(2):377-385. DOI: 10.1111/dar.13351. View

Fischer B, Lee A, Robinson T, Hall W . An overview of select cannabis use and supply indicators pre- and post-legalization in Canada. Subst Abuse Treat Prev Policy. 2021; 16(1):77. PMC: 8496143. DOI: 10.1186/s13011-021-00405-7. View

Graubard B, Korn E . Predictive margins with survey data. Biometrics. 2001; 55(2):652-9. DOI: 10.1111/j.0006-341x.1999.00652.x. View

Leung J, Chan G, Stjepanovic D, Chung J, Hall W, Hammond D . Prevalence and self-reported reasons of cannabis use for medical purposes in USA and Canada. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2022; 239(5):1509-1519. PMC: 9110511. DOI: 10.1007/s00213-021-06047-8. View

MacCallum C, Lo L, Pistawka C, Christiansen A, Boivin M, Snider-Adler M . A Clinical Framework for Assessing Cannabis-Related Impairment Risk. Front Psychiatry. 2022; 13:883517. PMC: 9272752. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.883517. View

10.

Beckson M, Hagtvedt R, Els C . Cannabis use before safety-sensitive work: What delay is prudent?. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2021; 133:104488. DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.12.011. View

11.

Smith P, Saunders R, Lifshen M, Black O, Lay M, Breslin F . The development of a conceptual model and self-reported measure of occupational health and safety vulnerability. Accid Anal Prev. 2015; 82:234-43. DOI: 10.1016/j.aap.2015.06.004. View

12.

Broyd S, van Hell H, Beale C, Yucel M, Solowij N . Acute and Chronic Effects of Cannabinoids on Human Cognition-A Systematic Review. Biol Psychiatry. 2016; 79(7):557-67. DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2015.12.002. View

13.

Biasutti W, Leffers K, Callaghan R . Systematic Review of Cannabis Use and Risk of Occupational Injury. Subst Use Misuse. 2020; 55(11):1733-1745. DOI: 10.1080/10826084.2020.1759643. View

14.

Frone M, Trinidad J . Relation of supervisor social control to employee substance use: considering the dimensionality of social control, temporal context of substance use, and substance legality. J Stud Alcohol Drugs. 2012; 73(2):303-10. PMC: 3281987. DOI: 10.15288/jsad.2012.73.303. View

15.

Carnide N, Lee H, Frone M, Furlan A, Smith P . Patterns and correlates of workplace and non-workplace cannabis use among Canadian workers before the legalization of non-medical cannabis. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2020; 218:108386. DOI: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2020.108386. View

16.

Frone M . Predictors of work injuries among employed adolescents. J Appl Psychol. 1998; 83(4):565-76. DOI: 10.1037/0021-9010.83.4.565. View

17.

Russell Localio A, Margolis D, Berlin J . Relative risks and confidence intervals were easily computed indirectly from multivariable logistic regression. J Clin Epidemiol. 2007; 60(9):874-82. DOI: 10.1016/j.jclinepi.2006.12.001. View

18.

Carliner H, Brown Q, Sarvet A, Hasin D . Cannabis use, attitudes, and legal status in the U.S.: A review. Prev Med. 2017; 104:13-23. PMC: 6348863. DOI: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2017.07.008. View

19.

Frone M . Prevalence and distribution of illicit drug use in the workforce and in the workplace: findings and implications from a U.S. national survey. J Appl Psychol. 2006; 91(4):856-69. DOI: 10.1037/0021-9010.91.4.856. View