Changes to Marijuana Laws, Opioid Crisis and Substance Abuse: How Employers Are Dealing with These Complicated Issues
Over the last decade, there have been significant changes in state laws dealing with marijuana. At first, marijuana was decriminalized in some states. Then, medical marijuana was legalized in some states. Next, recreational marijuana was legalized in a few states. Now, a majority of states have legalized marijuana in one form or another. At the same time, the country has experienced an opioid crisis. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently issued guidance on how employers and health care providers should handle applicants and employees who are using opioids legally or who have a history of and treatment for opioid addiction. Employers have scrambled to update their drug and alcohol policies and testing procedures, but many still are unsure about how to proceed.
OBJECTIVES
- Explore the current legal landscape of marijuana laws.
- Review the EEOC’s guidance on drug testing and opioid use.
- Discuss pitfalls to avoid and best practices to consider.
James Reidy, Esq.
Attorney James P. (“Jim”) Reidy is a management-side labor and employment lawyer. He is a partner in the New England based law firm, Sheehan Phinney Bass & Green, PA, where he is the Chair of the firm’s Labor and Employment group. His practice focuses on prevention, training and compliance but he also handles matters when claims arise.
He has more than 35 years of experience in the field and been a media resource on workplace law for media outlets including CNN, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times Business Magazine, Bloomberg, NPR, The Associated Press, NPR Market Place, Buzz Feed, Law 360, Inc. Magazine, The HR Power Hour, HR Breakroom, SKI Magazine and HR Magazine as well as several local/regional publications.
In 2020 Jim was inducted as a Fellow in the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers.
Chambers USA and New England Super Lawyers have ranked Jim in the Top Tier of management-side employment lawyers for each year of the last 15 years. Best Lawyers USA named Jim the 2022 Lawyer of the Year for Labor and Employment Law (Manchester, NH) and the NH Business Review named him one of the top 200 most influential business leaders in New Hampshire.
Jim has been a presenter regularly at SHRM’s Legal and Legislative Conference in Washington, DC as well as SHRM’s annual conferences.