The Legalization of Marijuana and Workplace Drug Testing
Over recent years, the legalization of Marijuana has become a national debate, and state governments have been going back and forth with it. The legalization process of the drug continues to make progress throughout the country, and it has businesses wondering what that will do for pre-employment screenings. When an employer chooses to drug test its employees, marijuana is one of the primary drugs looked for in the results. If your business is located in one of the states where the drug is legal, do you still drug test for the drug? And what do you do if the drug test comes back positive? Since this is all fairly new for businesses to encounter, it can be difficult to come up with appropriate actions. This post is an attempt to aid in helping both employees and employers handle these new laws.
There is no place for drug usage in the workplace. For a business to grow safely and the work environment to stay productive, employees need to be in tip-top condition when reporting for duty. Drug tests are used to ensure that employees are consistently complying with work policies. The legalization of marijuana does not change this fact, and employers should still expect all employees to remain drug free. During the hiring process, employers should make their drug screening policies clear to any potential candidate, even if they operate in a state where the drug is legal. If a candidate’s results return positive for marijuana in a state where it is legal, then it is up to the employer’s discretion where to go from there. If your company is taking the time to make sure that employees are staying drug free, then the legalization of a drug should not change how you operate.
Another instance where the legalization of marijuana can make things murky is with random drug tests. Random testing is great for businesses, because they can ensure that an employee is staying free of using any drugs no matter how long they have been employed with the company. Employers still must be careful with discrimination and drug testing. If your company chooses to drug test employees randomly, then you must administer it without singling out certain employees. Randomly choose multiple employees or have all employees tested to avoid discrimination issues.
Drug Testing policies for any business are great to have in place whether you operate out of a state where marijuana is legal or illegal. With state governments continuing to legalize marijuana, it is important for businesses to keep employees informed of drug policies in the workplace and let them know that they are still in effect. Having an open line of communication set up for employees and employers can make talking about this topic more comfortable for everyone involved. By openly communicating what you expect from employees and listening to what they have to say, it creates a level of trust between both parties and transparency.
