In July 2019, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed into law the Jake Honig Compassionate Use Medical Cannabis Act, replacing the existing Compassionate Use of Medical Marijuana Act (CUMMA). The previous Act contained language that stated that “Nothing in [CUMMA] shall be construed to require … an employer to accommodate the medical use of marijuana in the workplace,” but under the new amendment, “It shall be unlawful to take any adverse employment action against an employee who is a registered qualifying patient based solely on the employee’s status as a registrant with the commission.” Employers should be prepared to create policies that will comply with federal, state and local laws, and respond to a potential increase in positive drug tests and the resultant challenges to any employer action taken in response to a positive test result.
