The Institute for Work & Health recently released the result of a study into the attitudes of Canadian workers about cannabis.

Conducted in June 2018—prior to the legalization of non-medical cannabis—the study aims to how legalization affects workers’ use of the drug, and affects the beliefs of users and non-users about cannabis use at work.

The study shows that 22 percent of workers across the country reported using cannabis in the two-hour period before work, during work or during work breaks. Respondents in Atlantic Canada were most likely (at 25 percent) to use before or during work hours; workers in Ontario and British Columbia (24 percent) followed.

The survey asked whether workers use cannabis for non-medical or medical purposes. Sixty-eight percent reported using it for non-medical purposes, while 24 percent said they used it for both purposes. When asked about specific reason for using cannabis, 59 percent reported using it to relax, 45 percent said it improved their mood, and 27 percent said it helped them cope with stress. Overall, 38 percent of at-work users said their reasons for using cannabis at or prior to work related to their work.

Asked whether they knew if their workplaces had policies in place on cannabis or other substance use, 63 percent said their workplaces did have such policies; the remainder said they either did not know about such policies, or their workplaces had no such policies.

One fifth of those who said they used cannabis at or prior to work during the previous year said they believed doing so created either no risk or only a slight risk of harm to themselves or others.

Finally, when asked how easy it would be to get or use cannabis in the workplace, 44 percent said it would be easy to use cannabis during their lunches or breaks, 20 percent said it would be easy to use cannabis while working, and 21 percent said they could easily buy or sell cannabis at work.

The study, which surveyed more than 2,000 workers across the country and from a wide range of industries and occupations, was conducted with the support of a number of organizations, including the Ontario Building Trades and Ontario Ministry of Labour. It aims to help policy-makers, employers, and health and safety associations and professionals understand the short-term effects of legalization on the workplace, and provide them with information to help develop policies, practices and prevention initiatives to ensure lower-risk cannabis use among Canadian workers.

The research team will continue to resurvey this same group of workers (and more) for three years post-legalization to determine whether legalization is associated with changes in workplace use and related perceptions and norms.

For more information on the study, and to view its companion infographic, visit www.iwh.on.ca/projects/workplace-cannabis-use-and-perceptions-among-canadian-workers.