Information and guidance on every phase of employment
Q: Are there any new cases involving Pennsylvania’s Medical Marijuana Act in the context of employment?
A: Given that state-sanctioned use of medical marijuana is relatively new, there are few cases interpreting Pennsylvania’s medical marijuana law with regard to employment. This is why a recently filed Pennsylvania lawsuit could have…
Q. Now that medical marijuana is legal in New Jersey, does the Law Against Discrimination require employers to provide an accommodation for medical marijuana use?
A. While New Jersey employers are not required to accommodate the use of medical marijuana in the workplace, they may be required to accommodate an employee’s off-duty use of medical marijuana outside of the workplace, according to a recent decision. On March 27, 2019, the New Jersey Appellate Division reversed a lower court’s ruling that state law does not provide employment protections for medical marijuana users. Although the court affirmed that employers are not required to accommodate an employee’s use of medical marijuana in the workplace, the court found that failure to accommodate off-duty use of medical marijuana outside the workplace could give rise to liability under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (NJLAD).
Q: Can my company refuse to hire or terminate an individual because the individual is a medical marijuana user?
A: Not necessarily. While we have not seen any laws to date explicitly requiring employers to accommodate employees’ use of marijuana for medicinal purposes while at work, in some states at least, employers may not terminate employees for their use of medical marijuana outside of the workplace, even if it means that the employee tests positive in a drug screen.
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