Effective February 1, 2018, a provision of Maine’s recreational marijuana law prohibits employers from taking adverse employment actions for off-premises marijuana use. One of the provisions provides that employers are not required to permit or accommodate the use,…
Posts by Category: Pre-employment Drug Testing
Hair or Saliva or Urine? Which is Best for Drug-Testing Job Candidates?
There are currently three primary methods for specimen collection for employers who want to create a safe and healthy workforce through drug screening. Urine testing is used by 90 percent of employers, according to HireRight, with saliva used by 10 percent and hair…
Fake Urine Ban Being Considered in Mississippi
The Mississippi Urine Trouble Act, sponsored by Republican State Representative Andy Gipson, would ban the sale or use of synthetic human urine for the purposes of defrauding a drug test, including one for employment. A box of fake urine can be purchased at truck…
Does Workplace Drug Testing Work?
With marijuana becoming more widely accepted, some are questioning the need for workplace drug testing. Quest Diagnostics recently reviewed published research and articles to highlight key points, such as how people under the influence of drugs perform in their job…
Changing Marijuana Laws and the Opioid Crisis are Prompting Employer Action
Each year, the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) holds a panel on state and national drug laws at its employment law and legislative conference. One attendee, an attorney at Sheehan Phinney Bass & Green PA, said he has become known as a “pot lawyer”…
Employers Can Maintain a Drug Free Workplace in California Despite State Legalization of Recreational Marijuana
California’s passage of the “Control, Regulate, and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act,” commonly referred to as Proposition 64, legalized the scale, possession, and use of recreational marijuana under limited circumstances. The drug still remains an…
Will California Employment Law Protect Medical Marijuana Users?
A proposed bill in the state of California would protect medical marijuana users from employment discrimination. California employers currently can deny employment to users of marijuana, even if the use is to treat a medical condition. But the new bill, AB 2069, would…
The Coming Decline of the Employment Drug Test
Marijuana is now legal in nine states and Washington, D.C., which has resulted in the slow decline of pre-employment drug tests. Excellence Health Inc., a Las Vegas-based health care company with about 6,000 employees, no longer drug tests people coming to work for…
Recreational Cannabis in the Workplace: A Guide for California Employers
Although cannabis usage is now legal in the State of California, employers may still prohibit its use in the workplace. Effective in January, California legalized the “recreational” use of cannabis for adults 21 years and older. Proposition 64, the Adult Use of…
Opioids, Marijuana and Substance Abuse Issues Present Both Familiar and Groundbreaking Challenges to Employers
With the advent of marijuana decriminalization and expanded use for medicinal purposes, the legal and human challenges regarding the opioid crisis also are expanding. One of the most challenging issues is knowing how and when to address an employee who appears to be…