Medical pot protections

Takeaways from Tallahassee, Florida Politics, 11/23/2019


Sen. Lori Berman filed a bill this week that protects workers from being fired for using medical marijuana.

SB 962 bill wouldn’t apply to everyone, just state employees. And certain ones wouldn’t be entitled to the proposed protection, such as those whose work requires using heavy machinery or transporting hazardous materials.

Still, the bill would block “adverse personnel actions” for all other state employees.

Prohibited acts include “the refusal to hire or employ a qualified patient; the discharge, suspension, transfer, or demotion of a qualified patient; the mandatory retirement of a qualified patient; or the discrimination of a qualified patient with respect to compensation, terms, conditions or privileges of employment.”

That also means employees and job seekers would get a chance to explain positive pre-employment drug tests. To do so, they would need to show up with a physician certification for medical marijuana or their medical marijuana-use registry identification card within five days.

One last caveat, Berman’s bill doesn’t ban employers from taking action if an employee brings their stash to the office.