Order a Drug Test in North Dakota

Pre-Employment Drug Testing in North Dakota

North Dakota employers generally may require a drug test as a condition of employment when the requirement is disclosed and applied consistently. The policy should identify the positions tested, substances included, specimen type, consequences, and any required federal or contract standards before the applicant tests.

• Disclose the testing requirement before the applicant tests.
• Use consistent criteria for applicants seeking the same type of position.
• Choose a THC-inclusive or no-THC panel that matches the written policy.
• Use documented collection, chain-of-custody, confirmation, and review procedures.
• Address the employer’s policy for positive, negative, and refusal outcomes.
• Use a reliable laboratory and confirm non-negative screening results.
• Review legitimate medication explanations before a final employment decision.

Employer Testing Programs

A clear North Dakota policy should define covered workers, substances, specimen types, testing reasons, selection methods, refusals, confirmation and Medical Review Officer procedures, consequences, confidentiality, and medication review. Random selections should use a neutral method, and reasonable-suspicion or post-accident decisions should be based on documented policy criteria rather than assumptions about an individual.

• Use reasonable, sanitary collection conditions that protect privacy.
• Use documented collection, chain-of-custody, confirmation, and review procedures.
• Confirm non-negative screening results before taking final action.
• Offer a clearly defined process for medical review and retesting.
• Limit result access to people with a legitimate business need.
• Keep DOT and non-DOT policies, forms, and orders separate.

Select the panel and enter the donor information first. After the case is created, checkout searches available collection sites using the North Dakota city, ZIP code, or area entered for the donor.

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Private-Employer Testing

North Dakota’s employment code does not establish a single testing protocol that every private non-DOT employer must follow. Employers therefore should state the testing requirement and consequences clearly, comply with their own policy, and apply the program consistently to similarly situated applicants and employees.

A written policy should identify covered positions, substances, testing reasons, selection methods, notice, specimen collection, laboratory confirmation, medical review, confidentiality, refusals, retesting, and consequences.

Official state-law source: North Dakota Century Code

Written Policy and Consistent Administration

The policy should be distributed before testing and explain whether the program covers pre-employment, random, reasonable-suspicion, post-accident, return-to-duty, follow-up, or other testing. It should also define refusal, adulteration, substitution, and the consequences of each outcome.

Use documented chain of custody, qualified collection personnel, a reliable laboratory, confirmation of non-negative screens, medical review, confidentiality safeguards, and a reasonable retest process.

Federal best-practice source: SAMHSA — Drug-Free Workplace Programs

Pre-Employment and Random Testing

Private employers generally may require a disclosed pre-employment drug test and may establish random testing when the selection method and covered positions are defined in a lawful policy. Any testing promised or required by contract, regulation, or collective-bargaining agreement must follow those additional terms.

Keep applicant and employee test records confidential and separate from general personnel access. Before final action, verify identity, chain of custody, laboratory confirmation, policy coverage, and any legitimate medication explanation.

Program guidance: SAMHSA — Drug-Free Workplace Programs

Reasonable-Suspicion and Post-Accident Testing

A policy may authorize reasonable-suspicion and post-accident testing using objective, documented criteria. Testing should be conducted promptly, but a result should be evaluated together with the policy, observed facts, medication review, job duties, and any separate causation requirement.

North Dakota’s workers’ compensation law specifically addresses post-accident testing when an employer has a mandatory policy or reasonable grounds to suspect voluntary impairment caused the alleged injury.

Official state law: N.D.C.C. § 65-01-11

Confirmation and Medical Review

North Dakota does not impose one universal confirmation or Medical Review Officer procedure on every private non-DOT program. Confirming a non-negative laboratory screen with a specific analytical method and using qualified medical review are important safeguards before an employer makes a final decision.

DOT-regulated testing is different: 49 CFR Part 40 prescribes laboratory, MRO, split-specimen, result-reporting, and other federal procedures that a generic non-DOT order cannot replace.

Federal source: U.S. Department of Transportation — 49 CFR Part 40

Workers’ Compensation and Intoxication

N.D.C.C. § 65-01-11 places the burden on the organization or employer alleging that an injury was caused by voluntary impairment from alcohol, recreational marijuana, or illegal controlled-substance use. A qualifying test at or above the referenced federal cutoff can create a rebuttable presumption that the injury was due to impairment.

An employer with a mandatory post-accident policy, or an employer or health care provider with reasonable grounds to suspect impairment caused the alleged injury, may request testing. Refusal of a reasonable request or a policy-mandated post-accident test forfeits benefits arising from that injury.

Official state law: N.D.C.C. § 65-01-11

Medical Marijuana Is Authorized

North Dakota’s medical-marijuana program permits registered qualifying patients to obtain and use authorized products under Chapter 19-24.1. Registration does not legalize recreational marijuana or erase workplace rules.

Employers should distinguish lawful patient status from the separate issues of workplace possession, use, impairment, policy coverage, and a laboratory result.

Official state sources: North Dakota HHS — Medical Marijuana Program and N.D.C.C. Chapter 19-24.1

Employers May Discipline for Marijuana in the System

N.D.C.C. § 19-24.1-34 states that the medical-marijuana chapter does not prohibit an employer from disciplining an employee for possessing or consuming usable marijuana in the workplace, working under the influence, or working with marijuana in the employee’s system.

That language gives employers broad authority, but the written policy should still be clear and consistently applied. Employers should also review disability and other employment-law issues before final action.

Official state law: N.D.C.C. § 19-24.1-34

THC Testing and Policy Decisions

A THC-positive laboratory result indicates the presence of the tested substance or metabolite; it does not by itself establish when use occurred or prove present impairment. North Dakota law nevertheless permits discipline for working with marijuana in the employee’s system.

The employer should verify that the result is confirmed, the position and testing reason are covered by policy, and the policy consequence is applied consistently.

Official state law: N.D.C.C. § 19-24.1-34

Hemp Products and Federal Rules

Legally sold hemp or hemp-derived cannabinoid products can still produce a THC-positive drug test. Product availability does not require an employer to remove marijuana from a lawful non-DOT policy or excuse on-duty use or impairment.

Federal DOT marijuana testing remains mandatory for covered safety-sensitive work. A North Dakota medical-marijuana registration or a no-THC non-DOT panel cannot replace a federally required DOT test.

Official federal source: U.S. DOT — 49 CFR Part 40

DOT Rules Are Separate from Non-DOT Testing

A personal or employer non-DOT drug test should not be substituted for a test that is required under DOT regulations. DOT programs have specific requirements for test reasons, forms, collection procedures, laboratories, Medical Review Officers, refusals, records, and return-to-duty processes.

Federal source: U.S. Department of Transportation — 49 CFR Part 40

Examples of DOT-Regulated Industries

• Commercial motor carriers regulated by FMCSA.
• Aviation employers regulated by FAA.
• Railroad employers regulated by FRA.
• Public transit employers regulated by FTA.
• Pipeline operators regulated by PHMSA.
• Other covered transportation operations under federal rules.