Syringes, pills and prescription bottles Among the general workforce screening for opiates, positivity declined nearly 21 percent from a year earlier, the largest drop in three years and a nearly 37 percent decrease since the peak in 2015. (Photo: Shutterstock)

While the number of workers testing positive for use of opiates, heroin and cocaine has declined, positive tests for marijuana use are on the upswing—even for those in “safety-sensitive” occupations such as truck drivers and construction workers.

Indeed, due to the rise in marijuana use, the rate of workforce drug positivity hit a 14-year high in 2018, logging in at 4.4 percent, according to the latest Quest Diagnostics Drug Testing Index.

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Katie Kuehner-Hebert

Katie Kuehner-Hebert is a freelance writer based in Running Springs, Calif. She has more than three decades of journalism experience, with particular expertise in employee benefits and other human resource topics.