Two new laws will take effect next year that restrict how employers may respond to worker off-duty cannabis use. One law will restrict employers’ ability to ask about prior cannabis use in the hiring process, and the other...more
10/27/2023
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
California ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Drug Testing ,
Employee Rights ,
Employment Policies ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Labor Reform ,
Marijuana ,
New Legislation ,
Off-Duty Employees ,
Recreational Use ,
State Labor Laws
Resolving prior uncertainty as to whether Nevada law provides workplace protections to employees who use medical cannabis away from work, the Nevada Supreme Court has decided that NRS 678C.850(3), a statute in the NRS Chapter...more
1/5/2023
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Failure to Accommodate ,
Marijuana ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Nevada ,
Off-Duty Employees ,
Private Right of Action ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
State Labor Laws
Last month, the California Legislature voted to join what it refers to as “the movement to legalize and regulate the non-medical use of cannabis” across the United States, including offering employment protection for such...more
10/4/2022
/ California ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
FEHA ,
Labor Reform ,
Marijuana ,
Medical Marijuana ,
New Legislation ,
Non-Discrimination Rules ,
Off-Duty Employees ,
Recreational Use ,
State Labor Laws
The New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission (“the Commission”) on September 9, 2022 issued long-awaited guidance for employers on how to respond when employees are suspected of marijuana impairment. This is the...more
Ending years of discussion about the scope of state law employment protections for individuals who use marijuana recreationally, the Nevada Supreme Court has upheld a lower court’s decision to dismiss a complaint by an...more
9/1/2022
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Marijuana ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Nevada ,
Off-Duty Employees ,
Recreational Use ,
State Labor Laws
On August 19, 2021, the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission (the Commission) issued long-awaited initial rules implementing the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance, and Marketplace Modernization Act...more
Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont recently signed Senate Bill 1201, making Connecticut the 19th state to legalize recreational marijuana for adults 21 years or older. The new law not only requires expungement of certain...more
After contentious negotiations, Governor Phil Murphy has signed the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance, and Marketplace Modernization Act (the Act) implementing the constitutional amendment embracing...more
On the heels of New Jersey voters ratifying an amendment to the state’s constitution to permit the recreational use of marijuana, the New Jersey Legislature on December 17, 2020 passed the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory,...more
12/22/2020
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Labor Regulations ,
Marijuana ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Recreational Use ,
State and Local Government
On December 16, 2020, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued much-anticipated guidance to employers considering COVID-19 vaccination programs for their employees as to their obligations under federal civil...more
12/18/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
GINA ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
As we reported over the summer, on June 25, 2019, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker signed the Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act (the “Act”) into law. This Act legalizes the use, possession, and even cultivation of marijuana by...more
11/25/2019
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Amended Legislation ,
Cannabidiol (CBD) oil ,
Cannabis Products ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Drug Testing ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Labor Regulations ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Cultivation ,
Recreational Use ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Workplace Safety
On March 12, 2019, Oklahoma Governor Stitt signed into law the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Use and Protection Act. The Act, better known as the medical marijuana “Unity Bill,” amends the state’s medical marijuana law to create...more
In an unpublished opinion, a state appellate court held the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act (MMMA) did not provide a cause of action for an applicant whose conditional job offer from the City of Lansing was rescinded after he...more
2/25/2019
/ Conditional Job Offers ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Drug Testing ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Screening Procedures ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws
On February 1, 2018, Maine will become the first jurisdiction in the nation to protect workers from adverse employment action based on their use of marijuana and marijuana products, provided the use occurs away from the...more
1/30/2018
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Discrimination ,
Drug Testing ,
Employment Policies ,
Marijuana ,
Medical Marijuana ,
New Legislation ,
Off-Duty Employees ,
Popular ,
State and Local Government
Dear Littler: We recently offered a position to a candidate at one of our retail locations. He had a reasonable amount of head hair at the time we offered the job. After learning that we require hair testing both for new...more
On July 17, 2017, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court unanimously held that an employee may pursue a disability discrimination claim under state law against her former employer for failing to accommodate the employee’s...more
7/20/2017
/ Controlled Substances ,
Controlled Substances Act ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Disability ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Discrimination ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Hiring & Firing ,
MA Supreme Judicial Court ,
Marijuana ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Zero Tolerance Policies
Election Day 2016 proved to be a historic occasion for initiatives favoring expanded access to marijuana. On November 8, California and Nevada joined West Coast early adopters Alaska, Oregon, and Washington in choosing to...more