California Supreme Court to Issue Decision on Medical Marijuana in the Workplace
The California Supreme Court recently heard oral arguments in Ross v. Ragingwire Telecommunications, Inc., a case in which a lower court held that an employer does not have a duty to accommodate an employee's disability by permitting him to use illegal drugs, even if the drug is marijuana used for medical purposes pursuant to California's Compassionate Use Act (which protects medical marijuana users from criminal liability).
In that case, plaintiff was offered a job and worked for 8 days before his employer learned he had tested positive for marijuana and thus failed a pre-employment drug test. Even though he produced a note from his physician confirming that the marijuana was prescribed for medical purposes to provide relief for lower back strain and muscle spasms, the employee was fired. The employee subsequently filed suit, contending that his employer had violated California's Fair Employment and Housing Act in failing to reasonably accommodate his disability by terminating him for his use of medically-prescribed marijuana.
In its defense, the employer raised many of the concerns that are shared by other employers throughout the state, including absenteeism from work, diminished productivity and greater health care costs, as well as concerns relating to the contradictions between state and federal law regarding the legality of using medicinal marijuana. In response to these concerns, plaintiff argued that his use of marijuana did not interfere with his job performance, and that he did not use the drug during working hours or on the job site. Ultimately, the court of appeal sided with the employer and found that employers may legally terminate employees for using illegal drugs, with no exceptions for medically-prescribed marijuana.
A decision is expected by the California Supreme Court in this case by early February 2008, at which time we will post a blog-entry summarizing the Court's decision. In the interim, please contact us directly to discuss any questions you may have regarding your obligation to accommodate employees using marijuana for medicinal purposes.