Can jobs drug test once marijuana is legal in Missouri? What to know about weed & work

Although recreational marijuana will soon be legal in Missouri, people will still need to be mindful of their marijuana intake if they have a job that regularly drug tests employees.

If your job prohibits marijuana use or wants to drug test you to see if you have weed in your system, they will be well within their rights even though Missouri voted to pass Amendment 3 on Tuesday.

Amendment 3 does not prohibit Missouri employers from having policies restricting marijuana use.

There will be some protections in place for medical marijuana users, but regardless of if a person is using medicinal or recreational marijuana, it’s still on employees to make sure that they are not impaired while on the job.

“There’s still the possibility of employment consequences if the employer has policies internally that prohibit such behavior,” marijuana defense attorney Greg Watt said.

Here’s a breakdown of what to know about weed and work.

What about medical marijuana users?

Once Amendment 3 goes into effect on Dec. 8, medical marijuana cards cannot be used against patients seeking employment or while employed. That means an employer can’t discipline an employee or potential employee based only on the fact that a person is a medical marijuana patient, or because they consume marijuana outside of work.

However, these protections don’t necessarily mean that medical users can be impaired at work without consequence.

“We thought these are some important changes that we need to make sure that patients are protected. They shouldn’t be penalized by any of these processes simply for using what they need medically,” said John Payne, a spokesperson for LegalMO, the campaign that has pushed for the marijuana legalization initiative.

A medical marijuana patient cannot be fired for legally using marijuana of the job, as long as they have all the qualifying documents to show that they are a patient. Someone also cannot be fired just because they test positive for marijuana in their system if they are a medical patient.

However, an employer can take action if a person is under the influence while on the premise of the job, during work hours, if that is against the workplace policy.

Even with the protections in Amendment 3, employers can restrict marijuana usage if the employee is impaired and the marijuana is affecting the employee’s performance or leading to safety issues.

What the amendment prohibits employers from doing is disciplining an employee or choosing not to hire someone simply because marijuana is in their system, if that person is a medical marijuana patient.

What about people who are using marijuana recreationally?

The employee protections in Amendment 3 will not extend to non-medical users, according to Payne.

People who are using marijuana recreationally will have fewer protections than medical marijuana users once the amendment goes into effect.

If someone is caught under the influence or tests for marijuana in their system, they can still be subject to disciplinary action from their employer based on the workplace’s policy.

This includes random drug tests, even if someone was not high at work.

After Amendment 3 goes into effect, employers still have the right to make their own company marijuana policies. They can still use their discretion when it comes to hiring or firing an employee just for testing positive for marijuana, regardless of if the person was under the influence while on the job or not.

Under the amendment, people will not be able to bring a claim against any employer —including future and former employers — for wrongful termination if that employer prohibits employees from being under the influence of marijuana while on the job.

“Employers have a lot of freedom to enforce their own policies. Just because it’s legalized doesn’t mean that it’s a panacea, so to speak, for consumption without any consequence,” Watt said.

The main thing to know is that even if consuming marijuana won’t be breaking Missouri law once Amendment 3 goes into effect, it could still be violating your employer’s policy.

This story was originally published November 11, 2022 at 7:00 AM.