Finally, the law also disqualifies any employee discharged for using medical marijuana in violation of the employer’s drug-free workplace policy from receiving unemployment benefits. Employers also have no obligation to accommodate an employee’s medical marijuana use.
As a practical matter, then, for Ohio employers, Ohio’s medical marijuana bill leaves things unchanged. The bill, however, and the attention it has received, serves as a useful reminder for employers of the importance of: 1) drug-free workplace or zero tolerance policies regarding the possession, use, or distribution, of alcohol or illegal drugs at work; and 2) regularly updating those policies to reflect changes in the law, such as the new medical marijuana law.
For employees who test positive for drugs or alcohol post-accident, Ohio’s rebuttable presumption law still places the burden on the employer to prove that the workplace injury was caused by the drug or alcohol use. Nevertheless, having such policies in place often affords employers legal protections, such as the right to take disciplinary action against employees who test positive post-accident, that might result from such disciplinary action.
What do you think about this?
