That's exactly what happened to Luke in Colorado. Luke worked as a guard at a private jail and they have a no drug tolerance policy and all employees are tested regularly. Well, Luke failed the test ... not surprising ... and he was fired.
The way the current medical marijuana law in Colorado works, there is no protection for employees if they fail a drug test, even though the drug was legally obtained ... does anyone see the problem here?
Lawyers make the case that although the herb may be legal by state's decree, smoking marijuana is still illegal by federal law, so employers have the right to let someone go based on the federal law. And it gets even messier when, "employer who knowingly hires a medical marijuana user is "arguably complicit in an activity that's illegal under federal law." WOW!
Lawyers make the case that although the herb may be legal by state's decree, smoking marijuana is still illegal by federal law, so employers have the right to let someone go based on the federal law. And it gets even messier when, "employer who knowingly hires a medical marijuana user is "arguably complicit in an activity that's illegal under federal law." WOW!
In both California and Montana the courts have found in favor of the employers in these cases. The California court ruled that, "Proposition 215, which allows use of marijuana for medical purposes with a doctor's recommendation, does not protect workers for being fired for violating federal drug laws before, during, or after work hours." In Montana the issue is addressed in their medical marijuana FAQ as follows:
38. What should I tell my employer if I am subjected to a drug test?
The law is silent on this issue.Seriously, that is really what it says, "The law is silent on this issue." What the hell does that mean?
The wording of each state's law concerning medical marijuana is different and as always, open to interpretation -- which varies depending what side of the lawsuit you stand on. And although advocacy groups say that they already have hundreds of complaints of employer discrimination, not enough cases have been brought to trial to create anything resembling a standard precedent across the board.
In Michigan the law states that, a registered user can't be "subject to arrest, prosecution or penalty in any manner or denied any right or privilege including ... disciplinary action by a business." But then goes on to say that, "nothing in this act shall be construed to require an employer to accommodate the ingestion of marijuana in any workplace or any employee working while under the influence of marijuana."
So that should make it clear as mud when someone goes to court in Michigan.
So that should make it clear as mud when someone goes to court in Michigan.
We've said it before, we'll say it again, the best way out of this regressive tar pit of contradictory and extraordinarily costly policies is by passing Federal Legislation that Ends Prohibition by decriminalizing marijuana, once and for all. If you haven't done so already, please dig deeper into the specifics of HR5843 (Thomas | GovTrack) and get involved educating your family, friends, community, and especially your church that there is active federal legislation that could address all these and many more issues, almost overnight, once passed.
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