Need advice

You drove a truck for 15 years and didnt know that doing some kinda drugs would disqualify you? I would assume that anyone with common sense, and this is a catch 22, would want to do drugs on their day after the last day of wanting a CDL...

 

If you put yourself through rehab without doing so under the guidance of an SAP (substance abuse professional, licensed by the fed's in follow up care) then you are out of luck and have to wait 3 years for the lmitations to expire on how far back a subsequent employer can check...unless there is more to the story such as your last employer is out of business, then there is no trail however you are not supposed to lie on the application.

If you did go through an accredited program, here's what you need to do - have proof on hand that you've complied with the follow up testing requirements issued by the SAP. You'll need to contact the SAP to see what follow up testing was prescribed then you'll need to get documentation that those tests occured (test results with dates from the MRO - the lab that the samples were sent to for analysis) unless your ex-employer has them on file still. If not, document why the testing was not done (such as your employer went out of business) and get back onto the testing schedule even if you need to pay out of pocket. Generally follow up testing goes on for one to three years in addition to the usual pre-employment and randoms. However the info I just gave may not apply, depends on the rest of your story.

 

What if the driver wasn't referred to an SAP as required by regulation ? Employers are not required to provide treatment but they are required to inform the driver of available SAP's .

http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/rules-regulations/topics/drug/engtesting.htm

 

That's a good question, you see, the reg's apply to everyone in the trucking business...both owners and drivers (and mechanics and clerks, etc..). If any driver tests positive, it is their responsibility to "rehabilitate themselves (remember Arlo Guthrie's words in Alices' Restaurant?) and not the employer. Any subsequent employer merely has to verify they have entered into a follow up program and/or completed it. Remember that most states have "at-will" employment regulations in place so there is no obligation to hire anyone as long as it is not discriminatory.