In the ever ongoing battle on marijuana use and legalization it is time to look at it from a workers compensation and employer view.  Understandably in certain states like Colorado it has become legal to consume marijuana.  So where does the line come into play when you have workers using marijuana and testing positive?

Being that marijuana still remains illegal under federal law an employee can still be terminated for testing positive under a company’s drug testing policy as we saw earlier today when the Supreme Court of Colorado upheld the state’s Court of Appeals when an quadriplegic employee was fired from Dish Network for testing positive for marijuana.  The employee had a valid medical marijuana card that was given to him to use for painful muscle spasms associated with being a quadriplegic.  The Supreme Court said that even though marijuana is legal in CO it is not a federal law, therefore he was not protected under the statue and they threw out his wrongful termination suit.

What does this go to prove?  It shows that just because marijuana may be legal in a state it still violates the federal Controlled Substances Act.  I for one feel bad for the employee who was fired because he clearly has a much bigger medical reason then others for the use of marijuana, but at the same time when it comes to employee safety and workers comp claims I am glad to see that there is a clear example being made to show the this is still a very dangerous drug to have in the workplace.

When an employee is impaired in any way they not only pose a danger to themselves but their co-workers, customers, or other in their immediate area.  Take for instance a delivery driver – he smokes some marijuana,; his senses become impaired, reflexes slow down, maybe he becomes drowsy and crashes into another vehicle.  He has now impacted himself, his company, and the other driver.  How about a factory worker who is impaired and working on a line, not paying attention his hand gets stuck in the machine and he loses a limb because of it – him, his family, and his employer are now all affected.

What does this do to a workers compensation claim?  This is clearly going to make a workers’ compensation claim more expensive, longer duration to close and possibly permanent disability if you look at the examples above.  Carriers and employers need to start including this more in their risk assessments in the states the have chosen to legalize marijuana.

I understand that the country is becoming more lax about the use of marijuana and that is seemingly does have some medical benefits to it, however it needs to have its own time and place.  People need to be aware that employers are looking to operate and safe and effective business which is why they enforce drug policies for a variety of reasons.  Clearly just because it is legal some places does not make you safe from termination of an employers drug testing.  Until marijuana legalization becomes a federal law no one is safe from an employers policies.

Dealing in the workers comp industry we see people injured everyday who are of sound mind and body, why make yourself susceptible to injury even more by being impaired?  Looking at the ruling the came out of Colorado I think it sends a message to everyone that the courts are not going to protect you if you make the choice to work while impaired even if it is “legal”