California Expands Marijuana Employment Antidiscrimination Law

On October 7, 2023, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill (SB) No. 700 into law, expanding California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act to protect applicants from discrimination based on prior cannabis use, with certain exceptions. The amendment takes effect on January 1, 2024. Quick Hits SB 700 amends California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act to prohibit […]

Right-to-Weed States: Assessing Impairment and Managing Employee Conduct in the Workplace

On May 9, 2023, the Washington state governor signed a law that will make it unlawful for employers to discriminate against hiring a person based on their marijuana usage, making Washington the latest state to become a right-to-weed state. With medical and recreational marijuana legalization spreading, a growing number of states are further implementing protections for […]

Colorado Voters Pass Proposition to Allow Regulated Use of Psychedelic Mushrooms

On November 8, 2022, voters in Colorado passed a ballot initiative to decriminalize possession of and legalize limited use of psychedelic mushrooms and other plant- and fungi-derived psychedelic drugs by those 21 years of age or older. The passage makes Colorado, which was one of the first states to legalize recreational marijuana, the second state to […]

California Passes Bill Protecting Employees’ Off-Duty Marijuana Use

California employers may soon be barred from discharging employees or refusing to hire individuals based on their off-duty use of marijuana, under a new bill headed to the governor’s desk. On August 30, 2022, the California legislature passed Assembly Bill (AB) 2188, which would prohibit employers from discriminating against “a person in hiring, termination, or […]

Nevada High Court Rules Recreational Marijuana Is Not ‘Lawful Off-Duty Conduct’

In a decision issued on August 11, 2022, the Nevada Supreme Court declined to recognize recreational marijuana use as a “lawful” activity for purposes of the state’s law providing employment protections for “lawful activities” or “lawful off-duty conduct” outside of work. The court reasoned, in Ceballos v. NP Palace, LLC, that while recreational marijuana use is […]

California Bill Proposes to Prohibit Employment Discrimination Against Marijuana Users

A bill recently introduced in the California Assembly proposes to prohibit discrimination against employees who use cannabis off the job. The legislation, Assembly Bill (AB) No. 2188, would amend California’s employment antidiscrimination law, the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), and make it an unlawful practice for an employer to discriminate against an adult applicant or […]