THE MARIJUANA ISSUE AT WORK
Handling The Legal
Marijuana Issue At Work
BY: MATTHEW WRIGHT
I
f there is one thing that most people
have learned over their lifetimes, it’s
that you shouldn’t show up to work
under the influence. Drug tests are a
standard part of many job screenings,
and positive results would traditionally rule
out any possible drug users, including those
who are partaking in marijuana. So, what
happens now that legalization of marijuana
has expanded across the nation? How will
workplaces reconcile the current laws—
some of which seem to be contradictory—
with their traditional and standard policies
on this issue?
Whether it is stated directly or
simply implied, most everyone
understands that employers are
responsible for individuals who
are employed on their property
and who are acting under their
authority.
Thus, employers have the right, should
they so choose, to put drug policies in
place. It is essential, however, that they
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have a documented cannabis policy that
can mitigate some of the risks they might
become open to due to the new laws and
regulations. This isn’t done to exclude
employees who use marijuana; it is done
to protect the business from potential
negative consequences of that use.
Businesses are responsible, first and
foremost, for the protection of their own
interests, employee safety, and customer
safety. The flip side to that is that medical
marijuana issues could potentially be
argued as a health-and-safety issue for
employees who have prescriptions, for
instance. Right now, businesses are able
to prohibit the use of alcohol during
work hours. They can also prohibit
employees from showing up to work under
the influence of alcohol. In the same
way, they can have firm and consistent
zero-tolerance rules for marijuana. The
difficulty here is a question of individual
regulations.
With new rules coming into place every day,
different laws in different provinces, and
marijuana being legal at the federal level, it
is almost like walking through a minefield
determining what is legal in terms of the
use of marijuana.
So what are employers to do? How can they
navigate these issues and still maintain
high employee retention rates and
productivity? These questions are tough
but have to be answered in the wake of
constantly changing regulation. For more
information, contact Cain Insurance for a
consultation about what your workplace
can do regarding its marijuana policies.
Matthew Wright, 24 year old marketing Intern at Cain
Insurance. Currently set to graduate in May 2019 with
an Arts Degree from St. Thomas University with a double
major in Communications and Science and Technology.