{"id":78673,"date":"2017-06-05T14:27:54","date_gmt":"2017-06-05T14:27:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/random-alcohol-and-drug-testing-for-pilots-under-consideration-at-new-aviation-summit.html"},"modified":"2017-06-05T14:27:54","modified_gmt":"2017-06-05T14:27:54","slug":"random-alcohol-and-drug-testing-for-pilots-under-consideration-at-new-aviation-summit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/political\/random-alcohol-and-drug-testing-for-pilots-under-consideration-at-new-aviation-summit.html","title":{"rendered":"Random alcohol and drug testing for pilots under consideration at new aviation summit"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Transport Canada is developing a new policy to take action against pilots caught working under the influence after two high-profile incidents last year where pilots accused of being intoxicated were intercepted at airports, according to a briefing note obtained by CBC News.\u00a0<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"pullquote\"><p>\n <span class=\"pullquote-quotation\">Transport Canada &#8216;is developing a policy &#8230; for timely action against pilots caught working under the influence&#8230;&#8217;<\/span><br \/>\n <br \/><cite class=\"pullquote-source\">&#8211; Briefing note obtained by CBC News<\/cite>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Transport Canada is holding an aviation safety\u00a0summit this week, for the first time,\u00a0which will focus on\u00a0helping pilots with mental health issues and substance abuse disorders.<\/p>\n<p>Tuesday&#8217;s\u00a0Fit to Fly workshop in Gatineau, Que., is aimed at figuring out if tougher safety rules are needed and if pilots should face random\u00a0alcohol and drug testing.<\/p>\n<p>In the first incident, Scottish authorities intercepted two Canadian-licensed Air Transat pilots on July 18, 2016, in Glasgow before a flight to Toronto and gave them breathalyzer and blood tests.<\/p>\n<p>They were charged with exceeding the legal blood-alcohol limit in Scotland.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\">Pilots charged with being impaired before Glasgow to Toronto flight<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Six months later, on New Year&#8217;s Eve,\u00a0Sunwing pilot <span class=\"scayt-misspell-word\">Miroslav Gronych<\/span>\u00a0was so drunk\u00a0when he stumbled onto his airplane in Calgary that his pin was upside down and he appeared to pass out in the captain&#8217;s chair.<\/p>\n<p>The foreign national from Slovakia, who was in Canada on a work visa, pleaded guilty to a charge of impaired while in control of an aircraft in March.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\">&#8216;Ashamed&#8217; Sunwing pilot pleads guilty to impaired charge<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Transport Minister Marc Garneau\u00a0sent letters to all Canadian airlines\u00a0<a href=\"javascript:void(0)\">saying he was &#8220;very concerned&#8221;<\/a>\u00a0about that incident.<\/p>\n<p>CBC News recently obtained a briefing note\u00a0prepared for Garneau\u00a0about the two incidents, which said\u00a0Transport Canada is considering changing its rules.\u00a0Garneau&#8217;s\u00a0office said the minister wasn&#8217;t available for an interview\u00a0until the workshop\u00a0starts on June 6.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2>Summit invited pilots, health experts<\/h2>\n<p>&#8220;[Transport Canada]\u00a0is developing a policy for the minister&#8217;s consideration for timely action against pilots caught working under the influence, while at the same time supporting the wellness programs that airlines have in place for those with alcohol or drug abuse issues,&#8221; reads the document, dated Jan. 12, 2017, which was obtained under the Access to Information Act.<\/p>\n<p>Pilots, unions and health experts from across the country and abroad are now descending on the National Capital Region\u00a0for the two-day event\u00a0to figure out\u00a0what else can be done to improve safety, &#8220;including whether\u00a0any regulatory changes should be considered,&#8221; Transport Canada confirmed.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.cbc.ca\/1.3686092.1496441979!\/cpImage\/httpImage\/image.jpg_gen\/derivatives\/original_620\/portugal-emergency-landing.jpg\" alt=\"PORTUGAL EMERGENCY LANDING\" width=\"100%\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"figure-caption\">Two Air Transat pilots were intercepted by law enforcement officers at the Glasgow airport before a flight to Toronto and were charged with being impaired. (AP Photo\/Humberta Augusto)<\/p>\n<p>In Canada, it&#8217;s against the law for pilots to fly within eight hours of having an alcoholic drink or being under the influence.<\/p>\n<p>Transport Canada said it takes violations of those rules seriously. It\u00a0can revoke\u00a0licences\u00a0and\u00a0issue fines of up to $5,000 for a pilot and up to $25,000 for a corporation, according to the briefing note.<\/p>\n<h2>Currently no mandatory testing<\/h2>\n<p>No regulator in Canada has\u00a0mandated random drug and alcohol testing yet, as privacy laws have made such a step\u00a0challenging. A 2013 Supreme Court of Canada decision ruled that random testing of employees is only allowed if there&#8217;s reason to believe a worker is impaired on duty\u00a0or if he or she was directly involved in a workplace accident.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"javascript:void(0)\">Workplace random alcohol tests rejected by top court<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In May, the Toronto Transit Commission <a href=\"javascript:void(0)\">started testing up to eight workers a day<\/a>, including bus and subway drivers \u2014 a decision that was later upheld by a judge, despite attempts by their union to block the policy.<\/p>\n<p>So far, three employees have tested positive, none of whom were operators.<\/p>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.cbc.ca\/1.4007470.1488491598!\/fileImage\/httpImage\/image.jpg_gen\/derivatives\/original_620\/ttc-new-streetcar.jpg\" alt=\"TTC new streetcar\" width=\"100%\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"figure-caption\">As of May, TTC workers have to undergo random drug and alcohol testing. (David Donnelly\/CBC)<\/p>\n<h2>Canadian regulator may start random testing for first time<\/h2>\n<p>The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) could also soon pave the way for regulators to mandate random drug and alcohol testing.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The commission is proposing that a very small number of workers with high-risk jobs at nuclear plants be\u00a0tested.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"pullquote\"><p>\n <span class=\"pullquote-quotation\">&#8216;We want to be proactive.&#8217;<\/span><br \/>\n <cite class=\"pullquote-source\">&#8211;\u00a0<span class=\"scayt-misspell-word\"><span class=\"scayt-misspell-word\">Andr\u00e9<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<span class=\"scayt-misspell-word\"><span class=\"scayt-misspell-word\">Bouchard<\/span><\/span>, director with <span class=\"scayt-misspell-word\"><span class=\"scayt-misspell-word\">CNSC<\/span><\/span><\/cite>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Andr\u00e9 Bouchard, a director with CNSC, is attending Tuesday&#8217;s workshop and said he would be\u00a0passing along what he&#8217;d learned during eight years of consultations with stakeholders, unions and the Canadian Human Rights Commission.<\/p>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.cbc.ca\/1.4144499.1496441787!\/fileImage\/httpImage\/image.jpg_gen\/derivatives\/original_620\/andre-bouchard.jpg\" alt=\"Andre Bouchard\" width=\"100%\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"figure-caption\">Andr\u00e9 Bouchard, director of the human and organizational performance directorate of safety management at the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, is to speak at the aviation summit. (Ashley Burke\/CBC News)<\/p>\n<p>The proposed regulations will be voted on in August, and Bouchard\u00a0said he believes the potential policy strikes a balance between safety and workers&#8217; rights.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s less than one per cent of the overall population that will be subjected to that measure,&#8221; Bouchard said. &#8220;These are the people in the\u00a0control room of the reactor. They are also the\u00a0people\u00a0responsible for the\u00a0physical\u00a0security of the premises.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We want to be proactive. We do not want to wait for an event to happen,&#8221; he added.\u00a0\u200b<\/p>\n<p>Bouchard\u00a0also said he wants the aviation industry to know that it&#8217;s important to workers that they\u00a0aren&#8217;t\u00a0penalized if they test\u00a0positive.\u00a0Instead, they should be given help and put into support programs, he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2>&#8216;If you prevent 1 accident you&#8217;re ahead&#8217;<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<p>Some pilots think random alcohol and drug testing isn&#8217;t a bad idea.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Jock Williams, a retired commercial pilot and former Transport Canada flight safety official, said the majority of pilots never break the rules, so it may not be necessary. But it wouldn&#8217;t hurt either, he added.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;If you prevent one accident, you&#8217;re ahead,&#8221; Williams said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Williams said he underwent similar\u00a0testing between 2003 and 2005 when he worked for the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, until they stopped doing it over complaints about employees&#8217; rights.<\/p>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.cbc.ca\/1.4144658.1496448493!\/fileImage\/httpImage\/image.jpg_gen\/derivatives\/original_620\/jock-williams.jpg\" alt=\"Jock Williams\" width=\"100%\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"figure-caption\">Retired commercial pilot Jock Williams says he underwent random drug and alcohol testing from 2003-2005 on the job. (CBC News)<\/p>\n<p>A computer would spit out names and those pilots had to report to the nurses&#8217; station to give a blood and urine sample, he said.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I think it probably created an atmosphere in which people did not brush with the rules because they knew they could be caught,&#8221; Williams said. &#8220;Certainly the feeling was, if you were caught with a blood-alcohol reading or any other actionable drug, that you would be fired \u2014\u00a0simple as that.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h2>&#8216;We really haven&#8217;t had a huge problem&#8217;<\/h2>\n<p>Nevertheless, random drug testing is a sensitive and\u00a0controversial topic\u00a0in the\u00a0aviation community.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>There are concerns over false positive tests, medical files being not handled securely, and pilots being treated as if they can&#8217;t be trusted to follow the rules, according to Greg Holbrook, director of operations for the Canadian Federal Pilots Association.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.cbc.ca\/1.4144544.1496443749!\/fileImage\/httpImage\/image.jpg_gen\/derivatives\/original_620\/greg-holbrook.jpg\" alt=\"Greg Holbrook\" width=\"100%\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"figure-caption\">Greg Holbrook with the Canadian Federal Pilots Association says it&#8217;s worth reevaluating if Canada&#8217;s system is stringent enough and if it could be safer. (Submitted)<\/p>\n<p>Holbrook said\u00a0the fact the Sunwing\u00a0pilot last year was intercepted before taking off in Calgary shows the current system is working.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We really haven&#8217;t had a huge problem with this in Canada, because most Canadian aviators are well steeped in the understanding that impairment and operation of an aircraft just do not go together,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p>Canada already has strong rules and programs in place to get pilots help with issues before it gets to the point where they abuse alcohol and drugs, Holbrook added. That includes peer-to-peer support programs and regular medical check-ups with specialized aviation doctors every six months.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>But at the same time, Holbrook said he thinks it&#8217;s\u00a0worthwhile that the workshop is\u00a0reevaluating\u00a0the current system\u00a0and how to improve\u00a0it.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/p>\n<p>Article source: http:\/\/www.cbc.ca\/news\/canada\/ottawa\/random-drug-and-alcohol-testing-transport-canada-workshop-1.4143791?cmp=rss<\/a>\r\n<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Transport Canada is developing a new policy to take action against pilots caught working under the influence after two high-profile incidents last year where pilots accused of being intoxicated were intercepted at airports, according to a briefing note obtained by CBC News.\u00a0 Transport Canada &#8216;is developing a policy &#8230; for timely action against pilots caught [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":78674,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[84],"class_list":["post-78673","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-political","tag-political"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78673","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=78673"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78673\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/78674"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=78673"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=78673"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=78673"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}