[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":3,"doc-seo-297990-105":59,"doc-detail-297990-en":131},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",[7,13,18,23,28,33,38,43,48,51,55],{"id":8,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":10,"show_sort_weight":11,"slug":12},1,"Document","Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":14,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":15,"show_sort_weight":16,"slug":17},2,"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":19,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":20,"show_sort_weight":21,"slug":22},4,"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":24,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":25,"show_sort_weight":26,"slug":27},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":29,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":30,"show_sort_weight":31,"slug":32},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":34,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":35,"show_sort_weight":36,"slug":37},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":39,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":40,"show_sort_weight":41,"slug":42},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":44,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":45,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":47},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":46,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":49,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":50},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":53,"show_sort_weight":52,"slug":54},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":56,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":57,"show_sort_weight":24,"slug":58},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":60,"data":61},"ok",{"site_id":62,"language":63,"slug":64,"title":65,"keywords":66,"description":67,"schema_data":68,"social_meta":124,"head_meta":126,"extra_data":128,"updated_unix":130},105,"en","cannabis-in-the-workplace-key-considerations-for-employers","Cannabis in the Workplace - Key considerations for employers","","Cannabis in the Workplace outlines how employers must navigate conflicting federal and state rules as legalization expands. It explains that workplace cannabis use remains barred under the federal Controlled Substances Act and related workplace safety and drug-free requirements, while state medical and recreational laws create exceptions for particular situations. The report also covers enforcement inconsistency, employee rights and potential claims, off-duty use protections in certain states, and practical challenges from drug testing given cannabis can persist in the body.",{"@graph":69,"@context":123},[70,84,106],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":40,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/cannabis-in-the-workplace-key-considerations-for-employers/297990/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/cannabis-in-the-workplace-key-considerations-for-employers/297990.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Fez","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-23","2026-09-18",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":105},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",12,{"@type":107,"mainEntity":108},"FAQPage",[109,115,119],{"name":110,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":112},"Why do employers need to balance state legalization with federal restrictions?","Question",{"text":113,"@type":114},"Even as states legalize or decriminalize cannabis, federal law still prohibits cannabis under the Controlled Substances Act, and federal workplace rules restrict drug use in employment settings. Employers must therefore reconcile state employee rights with federal compliance and workplace safety obligations.","Answer",{"name":116,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":117},"Can employers restrict or terminate employees for cannabis use at work?",{"text":118,"@type":114},"No state law permits employees to use cannabis on the job. Employers may generally prohibit use during work hours and may terminate employees for being under the influence of cannabis at work, subject to applicable exceptions.",{"name":120,"@type":111,"acceptedAnswer":121},"What makes workplace cannabis drug testing difficult for employers?",{"text":122,"@type":114},"Cannabis can remain detectable in a person’s system for months. This can lead to positive test results even when an employee is not impaired at the time of work, complicating employment decisions.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":125,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":127,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":129,"site_id":62},297990,1789749576,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":132},{"doc_id":129,"user_id":133,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":134,"doc_module":4,"category_id":39,"category_name":40,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":135,"file_id":136,"file_url":137,"file_type":138,"file_size":139,"view_count":105,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":44,"language":140,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":141,"faqs":142,"seo_title":143,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":130,"read_time":144,"preview_page_count":4},2336478940794,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_9964176cb1d06d4a9deccf72a44ae3dc","Cannabis in the Workplace Key considerations for employers  \nSeptember 2023  \nAUTHORS  \nPaula Day  \nDirector, HR Compliance Consulting [pday@lockton.com](pday@lockton.com)  \nJessica Denison  \nCompliance Counsel [jessica.denison@lockton.com](jessica.denison@lockton.com)  \nMarie-France Gelot  \nInsurance and Claims Counsel [mgelot@lockton.com](mgelot@lockton.com)  \nCannabis, also known as marijuana, has been illegal under federal law for more than five decades. Over the last 30 years, however, states and local governments have steadily been taking action to legalize and decriminalize its use or possession. Medical use of cannabis is now legal in more than three-quarters ofall states, and recreational use is legal in nearly half.  \nAS CANNABIS USE HAS BECOME MORE WIDESPREAD, various risks have arisen for private employers, which must consider both state and federal laws and balance employees’ rights under state law against the requirement to maintain safe and drug-free workplaces. Employers must also stay current with legal and political developments, review and update existing workplace policies, and carefully manage a variety of employment issues and potential employment practices liability claims in which cannabis may play a role.  \n2 | Cannabis in the Workplace  \nFederal & state laws at odds  \nIn 1996, California became the first state to legalize the medical use of cannabis.1 Today, medical use of cannabis  is legal in 38 states and the District of Columbia. Effective Aug. 1, Minnesota became the 23rd state to legalize its recreational use. Narrower uses of cannabis for medical purposes—for example, in clinical research or to treat specific illnesses only—are legal in nine additional states, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures (see Figure 1) .  \nFIGURE 1: MEDICAL USE OF CANNABIS IS LEGAL IN 38 STATES AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.  \nLegal adult recreational and medical use  \nLegal medical use  \nLimited legal medical applications  \nUse prohibited  \nSource: National Conference of State Legislatures  \nDespite widespread legalization and decriminalization of cannabis at the state and local level, any typeof cannabis use remains illegal under the federal Controlled Substances Act of 1970 (CSA) . Federal laws and regulations, including the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s General Duty Clause, explicitly bar the use of cannabis in workplace settings.  \nThe Department of Transportation requires that drivers, pilots, and others in “safety-sensitive” jobs periodically be tested for drugs (including cannabis) and alcohol. This includes preemployment testing, even in states  \nthat prohibit preemployment testing for cannabis.2 Further, because cannabis remains illegal under the CSA, employees using cannabis for medicinal purposes are not entitled to the federal protections of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.  \nIn 2005, in Gonzales v. Raich, the United States Supreme Court held that the federal government had the constitutional authority to prohibit cannabis for all purposes, even in states where medical cannabis use is legal. This federal holding, however, did not say the laws of California or any other state are unconstitutional, nor did it invalidate the state laws legalizing cannabis in any way.  \nFederal enforcement, meanwhile, has been inconsistent. In a 2013 memo (known as the Cole memo), thenDeputy Attorney General James Cole clarified the Department of Justice's plans to enforce federal drug laws while respecting state recreational cannabis laws. In January 2018, then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions rescinded the Cole memo; since then, however, the Justice Department appears to not have strayed from the Cole memo’s general guidelines.  \n1Cannabis is used throughout this report to refer to marijuana because cannabis is the more scientifically accurate name. 2Effective June 1, 2023, the U.S. Department of Transportation amended its drug testing p","cbCailBu3vqxGJW6","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCailBu3vqxGJW6","pdf",1774573,"English","# Federal & state laws at odds\n## Possible employment concerns\n## Drug testing in the workplace","[{\"question\":\"Why do employers need to balance state legalization with federal restrictions?\",\"answer\":\"Even as states legalize or decriminalize cannabis, federal law still prohibits cannabis under the Controlled Substances Act, and federal workplace rules restrict drug use in employment settings. Employers must therefore reconcile state employee rights with federal compliance and workplace safety obligations.\"},{\"question\":\"Can employers restrict or terminate employees for cannabis use at work?\",\"answer\":\"No state law permits employees to use cannabis on the job. Employers may generally prohibit use during work hours and may terminate employees for being under the influence of cannabis at work, subject to applicable exceptions.\"},{\"question\":\"What makes workplace cannabis drug testing difficult for employers?\",\"answer\":\"Cannabis can remain detectable in a person’s system for months. This can lead to positive test results even when an employee is not impaired at the time of work, complicating employment decisions.\"}]","Cannabis in the Workplace - Key considerations for employers | PDF",23]