COLUMBUS, Ohio — Although Ohioans can now smoke marijuana recreationally, that doesn’t mean they can’t get in trouble at all for using it.
Issue 2, which legalizes recreational marijuana, has officially become law, but it doesn’t mean it comes without obstacles. As a citizen-initiated statute, the legislature is free to make provisions on it. Aside from the legal fate of the legislation, there can also be complications with employer policies.
“An employer is still well within its rights to still have a workplace program and include marijuana in that, just as if it were still a completely illegal drug,” said Chris Lalak, who has his own firm as a labor attorney. “They are allowed to test for that. They don’t have to accommodate for it, even if there is a medicinal use for it.”
Ohio is the 24th state to legalize recreational marijuana, but it is still illegal on the federal level. Many corporations and businesses operate on a national or even global scale, which is why many employers have no concern or push to change or modify their drug policies anytime soon.
“The next step, as far as requiring employers to accommodate it, as I see it, there’s going to need to be some sort…
