Law stated as of 18 Nov 2014 • USA (National/Federal)
Resources to help employers understand and navigate state medical and recreational marijuana laws and their impact on workplace practices and policies.
Many states have enacted laws protecting the rights of patients suffering from debilitating illnesses to access and use medical marijuana. Colorado and Washington took the additional step of legally authorizing recreational marijuana use. For example, in Colorado, patients with a legitimate debilitating medical condition may access medical marijuana and adults at least 21 years old can legally consume or possess limited amounts of marijuana for recreational purposes.
This electoral season, Alaska, Oregon and the District of Columbia also passed recreational marijuana laws, which increases the burden on employers to ensure they provide safe working environments for all employees without running afoul of employee rights. The Alaska and Oregon laws, which go into effect in 2015, allow recreational use of marijuana and create a network of retail marijuana stores. The District of Columbia law, which is still subject to presidential and congressional approval, would permit individuals over age 21 to possess two ounces of marijuana and grow six marijuana plants at home. For more information, including specific information on effective dates, see Legal Update, Jackson Lewis: Alaska, Oregon and District of Columbia Legalize Workplace Marijuana. Significantly however, like the Colorado and Washington laws, the new laws do not require an employer to accommodate the use or influence of marijuana in the workplace.
Many employers have questions about state marijuana laws and want to understand what actions they can take to ensure the safety of their workplace without violating their employees' rights under state marijuana laws. Other employers want to enforce a zero tolerance drug policy but are unsure of their obligations under state marijuana laws. These employers have many of the same questions, including:
If an employer can terminate an employee or take another adverse employment action if the employee tested positive for marijuana use or refused to take a drug test, and whether the answer changes if the employee tested positive for marijuana use, but only used marijuana legally and while off duty.
Whether employers must accommodate the use of medical marijuana in the workplace.
If employers can prohibit the use of marijuana in the workplace, even if the state has legalized marijuana use in certain circumstances.
Whether employers can be penalized for employing individuals who legally use marijuana.
Practical Law has published several resources to help employers navigate this developing area of law, including: