Getting Stoned at Work?
With legalization of marijuana on the November ballot, voters will decide if California will be the only state in the union where pot can legally be cultivated, processed, transported, distributed and consumed.
The law opens a Pandora's Box of issues including state's rights, patient's rights and California's exploding deficit.
I am not here to pass judgment on the legislation's affect on society, but this statute would create a horrific quagmire for California employers.
If you think we are already viewed as the land of nuts and flakes, imagine the field day they will have on late night television if Proposition 19 is passed.
Of course Leno is taped in Los Angeles; so the law would make it legal for him to go on the air higher than a kite.
As written, the proposition is vague and confusing.
It includes a provision where employers could take action against employees only for marijuana use that "impairs" work performance.
[i] How is the employer to make the distinction? Must an employer allow pot smoking in public areas? One's customer service department could look like a bad scene from a Cheech and Chong movie.
There are also serious safety concerns.
Unlike alcohol that leaves the body in a number of hours, marijuana's chemical properties affect motor skills and judgment much longer.
Employees who are operating heavy equipment, or driving on the job could be under the influence for some time.
Beyond the obvious legal employment issues, what are the ramifications for California businesses? How will customers react? Could they lose confidence in California suppliers? Is this yet another reason for businesses to leave California? How is an employer to manage employees in different states equally and fairly? Will workman's compensation rates rise even higher? At a time when many businesses are struggling, how does this make any sense? Proponents of the law argue that marijuana is no different than alcohol.
But do we want to provide workers with more choices that would impair them at their place of business? Alcohol is clearly misused at times at work (not to mention in our schools and elsewhere) and to say smoking pot is the same thing should not give us comfort.
I would never seek to take marijuana away from people who are sick, and need access to marijuana as a legally prescribed and dispensed drug.
But California based business owners need to aggressively advocate against Proposition 19.
[i] CalChamber Tells Legislative Committee of Prop.
19 Problems for Employers-Cal Chamber Web Site
The law opens a Pandora's Box of issues including state's rights, patient's rights and California's exploding deficit.
I am not here to pass judgment on the legislation's affect on society, but this statute would create a horrific quagmire for California employers.
If you think we are already viewed as the land of nuts and flakes, imagine the field day they will have on late night television if Proposition 19 is passed.
Of course Leno is taped in Los Angeles; so the law would make it legal for him to go on the air higher than a kite.
As written, the proposition is vague and confusing.
It includes a provision where employers could take action against employees only for marijuana use that "impairs" work performance.
[i] How is the employer to make the distinction? Must an employer allow pot smoking in public areas? One's customer service department could look like a bad scene from a Cheech and Chong movie.
There are also serious safety concerns.
Unlike alcohol that leaves the body in a number of hours, marijuana's chemical properties affect motor skills and judgment much longer.
Employees who are operating heavy equipment, or driving on the job could be under the influence for some time.
Beyond the obvious legal employment issues, what are the ramifications for California businesses? How will customers react? Could they lose confidence in California suppliers? Is this yet another reason for businesses to leave California? How is an employer to manage employees in different states equally and fairly? Will workman's compensation rates rise even higher? At a time when many businesses are struggling, how does this make any sense? Proponents of the law argue that marijuana is no different than alcohol.
But do we want to provide workers with more choices that would impair them at their place of business? Alcohol is clearly misused at times at work (not to mention in our schools and elsewhere) and to say smoking pot is the same thing should not give us comfort.
I would never seek to take marijuana away from people who are sick, and need access to marijuana as a legally prescribed and dispensed drug.
But California based business owners need to aggressively advocate against Proposition 19.
[i] CalChamber Tells Legislative Committee of Prop.
19 Problems for Employers-Cal Chamber Web Site
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