WORKERS ON DRUGS CAN'T BE DENIED COVERAGE

PHOENIX -- Injured workers can't be denied benefits even if they were high
when they were hurt, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled Wednesday.

In a unanimous decision, the high court voided a 6-year-old law that says
employees who test positive for alcohol impairment or illegal drug use are
ineligible for weekly benefits and having their medical bills paid after an
on-the-job injury.

Justice Michael Ryan, writing for the court, said the state constitution
sets up workers' compensation as a no-fault system. That means if employees
are injured on the job, they are entitled to certain medical benefits and
payments for lost wages, no matter who is at fault.

Ryan said the Legislature is constitutionally powerless to alter that system.

Wednesday's ruling may not be the last word. Attorney Don Johnsen said
businesses may now try to amend the constitution to exempt drug or alcohol
impaired workers from compensation.

But Johnsen, a board member of Drugs Don't Work in Arizona, said amendments
require voter approval -- meaning convincing Arizonans to alter the system
that has been in place 80 years.

Ryan noted Wednesday's decision does not bar employers from firing workers
who test positive for drugs or alcohol when they show up at work.

In fact, Johnsen said the ruling may make testing even more commonplace: He
said employers need to "weed these people out before they have an accident."

Court records show David Grammatico was a working foreman, installing
drywall while walking around on 42-inch stilts. After several hours of
walking on the stilts, Grammatico was injured when he fell while walking
through a cluttered area on the job site, breaking his right wrist and left
knee.

He later admitted he smoked marijuana and snorted amphetamines during the
two weekend days before. A urine sample he provided in the hours after his
fall tested positive for metabolites of marijuana, amphetamines and
methamphetamine.

A 1999 state law says if a company has a drug-testing policy, an injured
worker can be denied benefits for failing a drug test or refusing to take
one. A hearing officer, citing that law, said Grammatico's inability to
prove his drug use did not contribute to his injury means he cannot collect
benefits.

That, Ryan said, is illegal.

The constitution makes compensation available to those hurt on the job if
the injury was caused, in whole or in part, by inherent risks of the job.
The system was designed as a trade-off: Workers are guaranteed benefits
without having to prove what caused their injury; employers cannot be sued
by injured employees.

Ryan said lawmakers cannot require employees to prove they were not at
fault when an accident occurred. Anyway, he noted, the "necessary risks and
dangers" of working on stilts could have partially caused or contributed to
Grammatico's injury.

The judge acknowledged that compensation is not available to workers who
intentionally injure themselves.

"Intentionally self-inflicted injuries, however, bar compensation only to
those employees who clearly have purposely inflicted their injuries," Ryan
continued. "

While alcohol consumption and illegal drug use shortly before work or
during work undeniably increase the chances of being injured on the job, it
cannot be unequivocally said that employees with alcohol or drugs in their
system who sustain injuries have intentionally injured themselves."