Over the past decade, employers have faced an increasing number of employees who take prescribed medication for a variety of conditions, including pain, anxiety, depression, and other long-term conditions. The employees may disclose their prescription drug use as part of return-to-work discussions or in conjunction with a drug screening.

In some situations, employers become concerned over the impact of prescription drugs on safe and effective work performance. These concerns are often based on the manufacturer’s generic warnings, including cautions against driving or operating heavy machinery when using the drugs. In some cases, employers attempt to use such warnings as grounds for refusing to reinstate a worker while they continue to use the medication.

Reliance on generic side effect information can conflict with the employee’s own doctor’s assessment of their ability to perform the job. The manufacturer warnings fail to take into account the dosage, timing of use of the drugs, and other factors that can determine whether such use will interfere with job performance. When faced with a disability discrimination claim, a doctor’s individual analysis about the employee’s fitness will usually trump generic warnings about potential side effects.

This does not mean that employers should ignore their concerns over the ability of an employee using prescription drugs to safely and effectively perform their job duties. Once the employer learns of such use, it can ask for information from the worker’s physician, explaining the job duties and asking whether the drugs present any issues with job performance. The employer can also observe the employee’s performance to determine if there are indications of adverse effects from the medication. These observations can form the basis for a request for additional medical information or even removal from the position pending resolution of these concerns. For employers, relying on a drug manufacturer’s general warnings cannot substitute for an individualized analysis of the actual impact of prescription drug use on that employee.

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