A bill in California looks to protect employees who use cannabis off the clock

266 0

California cannabis consumers shouldn’t have to worry about how they spend their free time

Leaving work sometimes means extreme exhaustion, tiredness, stress, and many more. For those times, many people might want to find a moment of relaxation accompanied by cannabis; however, it can get them in trouble with the employer. Such a scenario could be changed by a California bill that seeks to protect off-duty marijuana use by workers.

While it is true that the Golden State has legalized marijuana in its entirety, employers still have the power to conduct a drug test whenever they see fit. This remains a reality even though several studies have indicated that cannabis does not actually cause impairment in people’s daily work.

To put all that controversy aside, legislation is currently being considered in the state. It is intended to protect workers from discrimination for off-duty cannabis use. California Assemblyman Bill Quirk is who introduced the initiative.

The bill has been on the table since the beginning of the year and has since passed the House and the Senate Appropriations Committee. The only challenge here is that the clock is ticking and with the session ending on September 1, legislators have to hurry if they really want the measure to be implemented.

If approved, it would be in the hands of Governor Gavin Newsom, with a deadline of September 30. It’s certainly something that has Quirk scratching his head after seeing how Newsom recently vetoed legislation on safe consumption sites.

Through this bill, employers would no longer be free to discriminate against employees or leave them out of the hiring process solely because of off-duty cannabis use. Simply put, it would be illegal to make such decisions based on a drug test showing “non-active cannabis metabolites” in a person’s urine, hair, or blood.