A bipartisan bill introduced on Capitol Hill this week aims to protect federal workers who use cannabis in conformity with the laws of their state. The\u00a0Fairness in Federal Drug Testing Under State Laws\u00a0Act would prohibit cannabis drug-testing \u201cfrom being used as the sole factor to deny or terminate federal employment for civilian positions at executive branch agencies if the individual is in compliance with the marijuana laws in their state of residence.\u201d<\/p>\n
A sponsor of the\u00a0bill<\/a>, Rep. Charlie Crist (D-FL), was quick to frame the legislation in terms of rights for workers \u2014 especially the ailing and veterans.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cFor our veterans, cannabis has been shown to address chronic pain and PTSD, often replacing addictive and harmful opioids,\u201d Crist said in a\u00a0press release<\/a>. \u201cAt the same time, the federal government is the largest employer of our veterans\u2019 community. This conflict, between medical care and maintaining employment, needs to be resolved. For federal employees complying with state cannabis law, they shouldn\u2019t have to choose between a proven treatment and their job.\u201d<\/p>\n Co-sponsor Rep. Don Young (R-AK) said that he was optimistic that the bill would pass.<\/p>\n \u201cI truly believe that in this Congress we will see real reform of our nation\u2019s cannabis laws \u2014 reform based on a states\u2019 right approach,\u201d Young said in the same release. \u201cThis bill would protect federal workers, including veterans, from discrimination should they be participating in activities compliant with state-level cannabis laws on their personal time.\u201d<\/p>\n He added: \u201cThe last thing we need is to drive talented workers away from these employment opportunities. As a co-chair of the\u00a0Congressional Cannabis Caucus<\/a>, I remain committed to promoting this bill, as well as other legislation to protect individuals and reform our federal cannabis laws.\u201d<\/p>\n The bill is a rewrite of\u00a0similar legislation<\/a>\u00a0that failed to pass last year.<\/p>\n HR 1687, as the bill is designated, would bar federal agencies from discriminating against workers solely on the basis of their status as a cannabis user or due to testing positive for cannabis use on a workplace drug test. This is a concern for all federal workers who consume cannabis.\u00a0<\/p>\n In 1986, the Federal Drug-Free Workplace Program required that all civilian workers at executive branch agencies be prohibited from using substances that are illegal under federal law as a condition of employment. Medical marijuana (not necessarily including actual herbaceous cannabis) is currently legal in 31 states, as well as the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam. When\u00a0CBD-only states<\/a>\u00a0are included, the number reaches 46. Yet cannabis, of course, remains illegal under federal law. So federal workers can be denied employment or terminated due to testing positive for cannabis metabolites \u2014 even if their use is in compliance with state law.<\/p>\n A September 2017\u00a0study\u00a0<\/a>by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management\u00a0found that military veterans make up approximately one-third of the federal workforce. And a January 2018\u00a0study<\/a>\u00a0published by the National Institutes of Health\u00a0found that veterans use medical marijuana at double the rate of the general public. A November 2017\u00a0poll\u00a0<\/a>by the American Legion\u00a0found that one in five veterans use cannabis to alleviate a medical condition.\u00a0<\/p>\n NORML<\/a>\u00a0released a statement expressing how heartened the organization is by the legislation. \u201cThe discriminatory practice of pre-employment drug testing for cannabis disproportionately hurts the ability for veterans and medical patients to achieve economic security and a feeling of self-worth,\u201d\u00a0said<\/a>\u00a0NORML political director Justin Strekal. \u201cThe bipartisan nature of this effort and the bill\u2019s sponsors underscore the absurdity of the status quo and we appreciate the leadership of congressmen Charlie Crist and Don Young.\u201d<\/p>\n Liberalization of cannabis\u2019s legal status at the state level has not negatively impacted workplace safety, NORML asserts. The organization cites a 2016\u00a0study<\/a> published by the National Bureau of Economic Research\u00a0finding that legalization of medical marijuana is associated with greater workforce participation and fewer workplace absences.\u00a0<\/p>\n In January 2017, the National Academies of Sciences issued a\u00a0report<\/a>\u00a0on\u00a0\u201cThe Health Effects of Cannabis and Cannabinoids,\u201d which found \u201cinsufficient evidence\u201d to support an association between cannabis use and occupational accidents or injuries.<\/p>\n As evidence mounts for the efficacy of cannabis in treating PTSD, medical marijuana is fast being\u00a0normalized in the veterans\u2019 community<\/a>. And in a sign of progress, the courts are\u00a0increasingly siding<\/a>\u00a0with employees fired for use of cannabis under state medical marijuana programs.\u00a0<\/p>\n TELL US<\/strong>, have you ever been drug tested as a medical marijuana consumer?\u00a0<\/p>\n The post Weed-Fueled Workers of the World, Unite! New Pot Employment Rights Bill Introduced to Congress<\/a> appeared first on Cannabis Now<\/a>.<\/p>\n
A bipartisan bill introduced on Capitol Hill this week aims to protect federal workers who use cannabis in conformity with the laws of their state. The\u00a0Fairness in Federal Drug Testing Under State Laws\u00a0Act would prohibit cannabis drug-testing \u201cfrom being used as the sole factor to deny or terminate federal employmentContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":190,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[50,83,1348,9393,139,146,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33835"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/190"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33835"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33835\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33836,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33835\/revisions\/33836"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33835"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33835"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33835"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Critical Question for Federal Workers \u2014 and Vets<\/h4>\n
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\nRead More: Weed-Fueled Workers of the World, Unite! New Pot Employment Rights Bill Introduced to Congress<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"