Milwaukee commission upholds discharge of DPW sanitation worker after MRO rules ‘refusal to test’

The Milwaukee City Service Commission on April 14 upheld the Department of Public Works’ discharge of recycling driver Jeffrey Datka after the office of the Medical Review Officer determined Datka’s medical documentation did not establish a condition that would have prevented him from producing a required urine specimen for a DOT-regulated test.

The decision follows a formal appeal hearing in which the department argued it followed federal regulations and the city’s drug-and-alcohol policy, and the appellant and his medical provider said he has a medically recognized condition often described as “shy bladder.” Commissioners voted 4–0 to find the department had cause to discipline Datka and then voted 4–0 to sustain the department’s discharge action.

City and department attorneys and witnesses told the commission the federal regulations that govern drug testing for commercial drivers require a medical review by a credentialed Medical Review Officer (MRO). Joshua Stratton, human resources representative for the Department of Public Works, told the commission that after Datka failed to provide a 45-milliliter urine specimen within…