Two Osaka subway drivers test positive for illegal substances

If both men tested negative for their second test, why are they still being removed from duty and punished? Also can't the media be more specific as to which illegal substances they're accused of taking? This is very vague.

Seep Racer, there must be MORE to the story than what is being published, most likely these idiot drivers where say, smoking marijuana??

substances are probably speed. I'm going to guess that they had typically bad Japanese sleep habits. Getting 8 uniterrupted hours sleep a day and having proper bedrooms at home would solve such problems. The guy at my subway station was always asleep on the job when I used to pass thru around 6:30 a.m. Mon-Fri.

Deny, deny, deny and wait for your lawyer.

They are taking the Ronald Reagan/Ollie North defense... "I have no recollection of that."

Second test was negative, but still they are punished? Finger pointing apparently is a legal conviction in Japan.

I would love to point my finger at soooo many people!

Drug and alcohol testing of train and bus drivers before every shift should be mandatory as it is in other countries.

Seems like whatever substance they took has a side effect of amnesia, iether that or its a case of selective memory loss when caught

"Drug and alcohol testing of train and bus drivers before every shift should be mandatory as it is in other countries."

Which countries are you referring to?

Why do the second test? I am a safety critical worker and at my company we have routine random drug and alcohol testing. A second test in a lab is necessary to substantiate the accuracy of the first. It has been proved that even some common foods can give false readings on the first and if you do have drugs in your system they do not simply disappear.

guilty until proven guilty

I hope the company gets slapped fast and hard for trying to punish workers based on faulty testing!!

A precedent must be set quickly and very visibly. False positives happen.

One of them tested positive for cannabis (marijuana) and the other for amphetamine.Under the Cannabis Control Law of Japan, usage of marijuana itself is not crime( there are no provisions on use). Possession is a crime though. So the one that tested positive for marijuana was not referred to the police but the other man was.

So Osaka transportation bureau plans to take the initial results seriously, but completely ignore the results of the second test? Perhaps they should explain the reason for the discrepancy between the results and explain what evidence they have that proves their first test was accurate and the police test flawed.

What right does a company have to test your blood? Especially as they obviously made a mistake.

No one is charged in Japan for usage of marijuana. Police have to prove possession in order to be charged.

Under the labor laws of Japan, companies may give you a blood test only if there is consent.

CrazyJoe you have absolutely no idea what the laws are in Japan. Like in all countries, transportation workers are randomly tested and manditorily after any kind of accident or other incedent.

With regards to drug laws.

Through the implementation of a drug law and thorough research work conducted by Japanese CROs, drugs like marijuana and cannabis are illegal to be sold or bought in Japan. Amphetamines, Cocaine, LSD, heroin and of course ecstasy are also quite popular in Japan, but all of them are outlawed to be used or sold in Japan.

The penalties imposed on those who are found taking drugs are very harsh indeed. People get sentenced to months and years in jail just for possessing or taking drugs like LSD, cocaine, marijuana and cannabis. There is also a problem with opium in Japan, as lots of people are drawn towards this oriental drug, but even this drug is illegal.

Can you read Japanese? 使用者は、労働者に対するアルコール検査及び薬物検査については、原則として、特別な職業上の必要性があって、本人の明確な同意を得て行う場合を除き、行ってはならない。

Moderator: No Japanese without English translations.

Out of the 2838 subway train and bus drivers , one did not consent so they tested 2837 drivers and two tested positive for drugs.

haha don't worry I catch buses from Nakamozu all the time, the drivers are very awesome and take me where i want to go!

Nakamozu is great.

The whole point of a second test is to ensure it isn't a false positive reading. Given the negative tests I can't see how they can justify the reprimand.

Equality - Which countries are you referring to?

Australia for one

Second test was negative, but still they are punished?

If you have a blood alcohol level of over the legal 0.03 when pulled over for a Breathalizer test, you'll test negative the next day, but you'll still be guilty of drunk driving, no?

With 0.03 BAC, you can't even eat a single liquor candy without going over the limit, strict but effective.

In Japan anything over 0.15 mg alcohol / 1 liter expelled breath is considered driving under influence.

The bureau said it plans to take the initial results seriously and plans to remove the drivers from duty and punish them accordingly.

That's total BS, have these people never heard of fault positives? The police came in and tested them and they were fine, why destroy their lives over this?

Before condemning either the company or the individuals l think it would be sensible to ask some questions. What where the illegal substances (given alcohol isnt illegal then it must have been drugs)? When where they retested, how soon after the initial test? Illegal substance take time to leave the body (most take in excess of 1-2 days) so if they where retested the same day as the initial test and it came back negative then they shouldnt be punished for what sounds like a false positive. However if the test was taken days after the initial test then its worthless and the men should be punished. However with the information in this article any speculation is just that as there are not enough details.

These 2 shud sue their companies, thing is even if they win it would take YEARS to come to a judgement & then the court would say, you WIN, here is your Y100,000!

The tables are SO STACKED against mere mortals in Japan it is a joke

After some serious thinking, hang them! Display their bodies at the stations with a huge notice around their necks explaining their deviant (true or not) behavior. It will at least teach others not to even think about trying anything abnormal.

"According to a Jiji report, the men, aged 38 and 40, tested positive for different substances. Both men deny taking the drugs, claiming to have no memory of having done so."

Japanese politicians in the making.

Hang them, it's too late for sanity, guess I will be deleted again. Ironic but funny, months a go. Happy to be the reason for employment for Mods.

Drug and alcohol testing is usually done on a show cause basis. It can be done randomly but I would suggest that most workplaces do it following a reportable incident. As for one positive followed by a negative........not two hours ago I watched a silly reality TV show where a young fellow did a positive roadside and a negative 30' later on the more sophisticated testing device. These guys have got nothing to answer for. I am an Australian train driver.

A few months back some idiot subway driver in NYC smashed his train into another that was stopped, but this idiot fool driver in NYC was SO HIGH ON COCAINE that he was smiling until his HIGH wore off and now this stupid fool is behind bars, so any bus, train, AIRPLANE PILOTS etc..should be checked, they are holding OUR LIVES in their hands, and if you have the bad luck to get on a bus, taxi with some idiot high on drugs and you end up dead or in a wheel chair for the rest of your lives?? Stop getting high and start thinking what your stupid habits may cause for the rest of us, so I say good on the Osaka government, catch these pot heads and kick them the heck out of those companies ASAP!!!

Amphetamines, Cocaine, LSD, heroin and of course ecstasy are also quite popular in Japan, but all of them are outlawed to be used or sold in Japan.

Aren't there legal prescription amphetamines?

Jeremy is right.

Jjapanese law. Guilty until proven innocent.

Japanese law. Guilty until proven guilty.

This is more of a witchunt. Somebody was out to get them. The first test might've had a reading problem, and if the second test is negative, what more do you need? These two need to get a lawyer and file a lawsuit against the city. There are attorneys that will work for no fee and if awarded damages, they are entitled to percentage.

Crazy irrational emotion based modes of thought at play here. Every group of people has its peculiar brand. Hard to say if the higher ups actually think they are being fair. But I suspect they just use this excuse to slaughter some sheep and further their own interests. By railroading these two, they look like they are on top of things to most Japanese. Somewhere else, the bosses would be smacked with a lawsuit they would lose and probably kiss their jobs goodbye too.