TBT readers are invited to join Seyfarth Shaw LLP’s upcoming webinar, “High Times in NJ: New Recreational Marijuana Law Limits Employers’ Options to Prevent Impairment.”

Register here

There is no cost to attend, but registration is required.

Thursday, April 8, 2021
1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. Eastern
12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. Central
11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Mountain
10:00
Continue Reading Upcoming Webinar: High Times in NJ: New Recreational Marijuana Law Limits Employers’ Options to Prevent Impairment

Marijuana remains a Schedule I drug under the federal Controlled Substances Act. However, more and more states and localities are either enacting marijuana laws with express employment protections or resolving court cases in favor of marijuana users. Yet, more than a decade ago, the California Supreme Court held in Ross v. RagingWire Telecomm., Inc., that employers have the right
Continue Reading California (Yet Again) Considers Legislation Regulating Employer Consideration of Marijuana Use

Recognizing that state medical and recreational marijuana laws are sweeping the nation, and that a recent survey reflected that nearly half of surveyed American adults have used marijuana, the Acting Director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued a memorandum regarding “Assessing the Suitability/Fitness of Applicants or Appointees on the Basis of Marijuana Use; Maintaining a Drug-Free Workplace.”
Continue Reading U.S. Office of Personnel Management Provides Guidance to Federal Agencies on Consideration of Marijuana Use in Hiring Decisions

New Jersey recently enacted a law permitting personal, nonmedical use of marijuana for individuals age 21 and over. Separate laws decriminalize marijuana and hashish possession and set out the penalties when individuals under age 21 use or possess marijuana or hashish. Although not immediately enforceable, New Jersey employers should immediately assess the implications of the laws on their current policies


Continue Reading New Jersey Recreational Marijuana Law Provides Significant Employment Protections to Marijuana Users

As more states legalize cannabis, growth in job opportunities rises. However, with more jobs, the greater the risk of employment related lawsuits at the hiring stage. While there are a host of issues cannabis companies need to consider at the hiring stage (i.e. background checks, policies, benefits, payroll, etc.), this blog post focuses on salary histories.

Salary history bans at
Continue Reading Hi[gh]ring Practices: Salary History Bans

As you might recall from our previous post, The 10th Circuit Grants Re-leaf to Workers Seeking Overtime Under the FLSA, the 10th Circuit held that cannabis employers are not immune from federal overtime laws even though the cannabis sector is illegal under federal law.

The employer in Robert Kenney v. Helix TCS, Inc., sought to clear the haze
Continue Reading The ‘High’ Court Denies Review of Federal Overtime Case Involving Cannabis Employees

On May 29, 2020, the Rhode Island Supreme Court affirmed dismissal of an employee’s lawsuit against his former employer after it terminated him for refusing to submit to a reasonable suspicion drug test, even though his “bizarre” behavior could have been attributed to other causes. As employers are becoming increasingly concerned about marijuana use in states with recreational or medical
Continue Reading Rhode Island Court Upholds Termination of Medical Marijuana User for Refusing a Reasonable Suspicion Drug Test

On May 11, 2020, a Pennsylvania court upheld the state Unemployment Compensation Board of Review’s order granting a CBD (cannabidiol) user unemployment benefits after being terminated for testing positive for marijuana (Washington Health System v. Unemployment Compensation Board of Review). The decision highlights that employers must tread carefully before taking action against applicants or employees using medical
Continue Reading Pennsylvania CBD User Entitled to Unemployment Benefits

On January 17, 2020, Hawaii Senators Rosalyn Baker (D) and Brian Taniguchi (D) introduced Senate Bill 2543, which proposes to provide employment protections to job applicants and employees who use medical cannabis. If enacted, Hawaii would join the growing number of states to pass similar laws.

Specifically, the most recent version of the bill provides that unless a failure
Continue Reading Hawaii Legislature Considers Bill Providing Employment Protections to Medical Cannabis Users

While it has been a challenge for employers to keep up with the explosion of medical and recreational marijuana laws spreading across the nation, employers have taken some comfort in that most of these states still grant employers the right to maintain a drug-free workplace and take action against those who test positive for marijuana, including rejecting job applicants testing
Continue Reading Most New York City Employers Now Prohibited from Conducting Pre-Employment Marijuana Tests