What You Need to Know about Medical Marijuana
Do you have questions about employees who test positive for marijuana?
NY law protects those who are medically approved for medicinal marijuana and those who use it recreationally outside of work in accordance with the law. Patients certified to use medical cannabis are deemed to have a disability under the Executive Law and Civil Rights Law. This means that recreational cannabis users and certified patients cannot be denied a job or subject to disciplinary action solely for their marijuana use. The law distinguishes a person who uses cannabis legally outside of work and someone who uses it or acts under the influence on the job (which is a terminable offense). In this case, the home cannot decide not to hire the applicant based on the positive cannabis test.
There may be a value to drug testing for marijuana but it’s certainly not as useful as it once was. Today, you’d need to know what you are doing to use the results (eg, to start a broader conversation with the employee/applicant about their “disability” or marijuana use). Remember, the applicant/employee often has less of an understanding of the law than employers and will sometimes make a mistake and do themselves in.
Similarly, the Compassionate Care Act addressed and made legal the medicinal possession and use of marijuana in NY.
- Here is a link to Section 201-d of the NY Labor Law which protects employees from action in the workplace based on off duty cannabis use: https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/LAB/201-D
- Here is a link to the DOH webpage regarding the Compassionate Care Act, including the law and the regulations: https://www.health.ny.gov/regulations/medical_marijuana/regulations.htm
