In April, West Virginia Governor Jim Justice signed legislation that legalizes the use of medical marijuana for those with serious medical conditions. The drug may only be dispensed as pills, oil, topical forms, vaporization, nebulization, tincture, liquid or dermal…
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West Virginia Enacts Law Permitting Broad Employment-Related Drug and Alcohol Testing
The Safer Workplace Act, will goes into effect July 7, 2017, will broaden the circumstances under which employers may conduct workplace drug and alcohol testing. Employers must comply with all of the statue’s requirements in order to take advantage of its benefits….
Unreliable Anonymous Tip Could Not Form Basis of Reasonable Suspicion Drug Test by Public Employer
Ralph Greer established a Fourth Amendment violation by several individual supervisors after being discharged from his position with the Detroit Department of Water and Sewage (DWSD) when he refused to submit a drug test to the company. The Construction Inspector was…
Quest Diagnostics Annual Survey Shows Drug Test Positivity Rates Continue to Climb
A recently published Quest Diagnostics Drug Testing Index has demonstrated that illicit drug use among United States employees is on the rise, resulting in the highest drug test positivity rates in the last 12 years. The survey of more than 10 million workforce drug…
Maine Delays Implementation of Certain Provisions of Recreational Marijuana Law
In November, Maine became one of four states in which voters approved a new recreational marijuana law. The law took effect on Jan. 30, but emergency legislation passed on Jan. 27 delayed the implementation of certain provisions of the law. This included pushing the…
Applicant Who Failed Pre-Employment Drug Test Could Not Show the Public Employer Violated Her Due Process Rights or Title VII
A lawsuit in which a job applicant challenged a public employer’s decision to withdraw an offer to employment after the individual tested positive for cocaine has been dismissed by a federal district court. Turner v. Richmond Public Schools, et al., No. 3:16-cv-256…
Discrimination Charge Filed by the Fortune Society Against Macy’s in Background Check Dispute
Outten & Golden LLP filed an Equal Employment Opportunities Commission (EEOC) charge this month on behalf of The Fortune Society against Macy’s, Inc. The charge alleges that Macy’s violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and other laws, terminating…
NY Highest Court Clarifies Who Can Be Liable for Discrimination Based on Criminal History
In Griffin v. Sirva, Inc., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit was asked to determine whether Section 296(15) of the New York State Human Rights Law (NYSHRL) is limited to a party’s employer and if so, can the coverage extend to other related entities? In…
Justices Weighs Whether Negligent Hiring Claim Against Pizza Hut
The Indiana Supreme Court recently considered whether the plaintiff in a wrongful death case can bring employment-based claims against an employer if the employer has admitted the employee involved in the death was acting in the scope of their employment. Pizza Hut…
FTC Issues ‘Advice’ on Background Check Disclosure and Authorization Forms
The Fair Credit Reporting Act’s (FCRA) hyper-technical disclosure and authorization requirements are competing with compliance of criminal background check laws as a source of litigation risk for employers. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently released the…







