In an unexpected turn of events, a Canadian truck driver who confessed to drinking a minimum of nine beers before causing an accident on a Pennsylvania highway has been ordered by a labor arbitrator to be reinstated by her employer. The arbitrator deemed her alcoholism a disability and stated that the company, Groupe Robert, should have provided a “reasonable accommodation” for her, reports the CBC. Although no one was injured in the crash on June 30, 2022, the truck sustained damage. The driver admitted to stopping twice to purchase six-packs of beer during her journey from the Montreal area to Pennsylvania. She consumed nine beers and could not recall if she finished the remaining three before she lost control of the vehicle.
“On the night of the accident, she felt compelled to drink,” stated labor arbitrator Huguette April in a decision released last month. “She acknowledged that despite knowing she shouldn’t, the compulsion was stronger, almost uncontrollable.” At the time of her arrest, the driver had a blood-alcohol level more than twice the legal limit. A week after the incident, she disclosed her drinking problem to her employer. Her termination became official on August 31 of the previous year, following her completion of an in-patient addiction program. The driver suggested that the company could have installed an alcohol ignition interlock device or found alternative work for her.
The Teamsters Canada union challenged her termination, although a spokesperson for Groupe Robert, who is appealing the ruling, claims that the agreement between the company and the union explicitly states that drunk driving warrants immediate firing. Andrew Clark at the Globe and Mail finds the driver’s decision to appeal rather than seek alternate employment puzzling. “It is difficult to comprehend how a person guilty of consuming nine beers and causing a truck crash could believe they deserve to retain their job as a trucker,” he remarks. (Read more truck driver stories.)
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