The protection person was a user of cannabis. Although it could not be established scientifically that his performance was impaired by cannabis at the time of the incident, he did have a detectable level of THC-acid in his urine when he was tested after the incident.
Under no circumstances should the performance of any rail worker performing any safety-critical task be affected by alcohol or drugs of any kind. The Commission recommends that the Chief Executive of the NZ Transport Agency work with the National Rail System Standard Executive in developing a National Rail System Standard that requires all rail participants to have drug and alcohol policies that: have zero tolerance of performance-impairing substances for workers engaged in safety-critical tasks; require post-incident and accident and random testing for drugs and alcohol; and require a system for rail workers to report discreetly co-workers suspected of using or being under the influence of drugs or alcohol in the workplace.
