Attention New Jersey Employers: Amendments to Medical Marijuana Law are Now in Effect
Effective immediately: New Jersey has amended its medical marijuana law, significantly impacting employers throughout the state. The previous law, in effect since 2010, specifically stated that “nothing” required “an employer to accommodate the medical use of marijuana in any workplace.” However, a New Jersey appeals court recently disagreed, holding that an employee who was fired after testing positive for marijuana (used medicinally to treat pain caused by cancer) could sue his former employer for disability discrimination for failing to accommodate his medical marijuana use outside of work hours. Wild v. Carriage Funeral Holdings Now, just a few short months later, the New Jersey legislature seems to be following that precedent by expressly protecting users of lawful medical marijuana off-premises and during non-working hours from discrimination. Under the new law, employers are prohibited from taking any adverse employment action aga...