Estes v. ConocoPhillips Co.

Summary

The Oklahoma Supreme Court answered two certified questions concerning the Oklahoma Standards for Workplace Drug and Alcohol Testing Act. It held that evidential breath tests used to determine an employee's blood alcohol level are laboratory services requiring confirmation by a licensed testing facility before an employer may rely on the results for discipline. The court further held that a willful violation includes conscious and purposeful violations or deliberate disregard of the Act by persons who knew or should have known its requirements.

Holdings

1. Under the version of the Oklahoma Standards for Workplace Drug and Alcohol Testing Act in effect on May 24, 2005, evidential breath tests used to determine an employee's blood-alcohol level are laboratory services and must be confirmed by a licensed testing facility before an employer may take disciplinary action in reliance on the results.
2. A willful violation of the Testing Act means a conscious, purposeful violation of the Act or a deliberate disregard of the Act by a person who knows or should have known of its requirements.

Questions Presented

1. Under the 2005 version of the Oklahoma Standards for Workplace Drug and Alcohol Testing Act, are evidential breath tests used to determine an employee's blood-alcohol content laboratory services that must be confirmed by a licensed testing facility before an employer may take disciplinary action?
2. What standard governs whether an employer committed a willful violation of the Testing Act under 40 O.S. 2001 § 563(A)?

Disposition

other