DOL: Employers can write up, fire employees for smoking recreational marijuana on the job

The New York state Department of Labor has released new guidance on what an employer can and cannot do now that recreational use of marijuana is legal.

News 12 Staff

Oct 20, 2021, 10:38 AM

Updated 1,088 days ago

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The New York state Department of Labor has released new guidance on what an employer can and cannot do now that recreational use of marijuana is legal.
Anyone over 21 years old can legally smoke marijuana in New York, so what does that mean when it comes to smoking at work? The Department of Labor is now saying that an employer can in fact take action for smoking it on the job if an employee is impaired by the drug.
The Department of Labor just released this new information that gives bosses a better idea of how to handle an employee that comes to work high. New York state law does not allow someone to be discriminated against for using marijuana outside of their job, but the DOL says during work hours, if someone shows up high, and is impaired then they could be written up or fired.
They say this is in an effort to keep the workplace safe. Management is not allowed to drug test an employee and use that to discipline someone if they smell like weed. In order to take action, an employee must be showing decreased or lessened ability to perform their job or be interfering with the employer's ability to have a workplace free of hazards.
Companies can also prohibit smoking during work hours even if you leave for a lunch break, and they can stop you from having marijuana on you at work. This applies only to the recreational use and not medical use of marijuana.