Hundreds of thousands of Florida residents have become lawful medical marijuana users, but under Florida’s Constitution, employers are not required to accommodate medical marijuana use in the workplace. But that could soon change if House Bill 595 and Senate Bill 962 are passed, which would afford sweeping rights to Florida employees using medical marijuana. Impacting both public and private sector employers, the proposed law would afford new employment rights for applicants and employees, including the right to sue employers if an adverse personnel action is taken against a lawful medical marijuana user because of his or her status as a qualified medical marijuana patient. Employers should review written job descriptions to determine which positions might include safety-sensitive tasks or duties and become aware of signs of impairment, which would permit an employer to take “appropriate adverse personnel action.”
