Washington Senate Passes Bill To Protect Job Applicants Using Marijuana
On Tuesday, a House Committee in Washington State Moved Forward with A Bill that Would Protect Job Applicants from Being Treated Unfairly Because They Use Marijuana.
The bill, which passed the full Senate last month, would make it illegal for most employers to turn down job applicants just because they tested positive for cannabis on pre-employment drug tests. Even if a worker is hired, they could still be fired if they test positive for marijuana after being hired.
The bill, SB 5123, was approved by the House Labor and Workplace Standards Committee by a vote of 6 to 3 along party lines.
Rep. Liz Berry (D), who is in charge of the committee, said before the final vote that the bill “protects workers in our state who legally use cannabis, which is legal here in Washington,” and that it “stops discrimination in Washington based on cannabis use, just like alcohol use is allowed.” In fact, the law doesn’t protect people who use marijuana at work any more than it already does.
Supporters of the bill say that the change is needed because many people in Washington don’t apply for jobs because they’re afraid they won’t pass a drug test.
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Last month, co-sponsor Sen. Derek Stanford (D) said, “This will make it easier for more people to apply for jobs without worrying that they’ll be thrown out during the hiring process.”
At the hearing on Tuesday, two changes proposed by Republicans were turned down, so the bill is still the same as it was when it passed the Senate.
One amendment would have added more jobs in law enforcement, fire departments, and jails to the list of those that would not be protected by the bill. Rep. Mary Fosse (D), who is the vice chair of the committee, pointed out that the bill already exempts jobs that require federal background checks or security clearances, as well as people who work in the airline or aerospace industries or any other safety-sensitive job where impairment could pose a significant risk of death.
Another would have given the state attorney general the power to enforce the law, such as by conducting investigations and going after employers who break the proposed rule with administrative sanctions or financial penalties. It also would have set the most that employers could be fined. Democrats said that the amendment would put cannabis use in the wrong part of the state law that deals with crimes.
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In 2012, Washington State was one of the first states in the U.S. to make it legal for adults to buy and use marijuana. But right now, the state’s marijuana laws don’t protect workers or job seekers who use marijuana on their own time.
Sen. Karen Keiser (D), who is leading the charge for SB 5123, has said that it “simply opens the front door to getting a job.” She also said, “If your employer wants to test you every week after you’re hired, they can still do that.”
In other states where marijuana is legal, there are already laws that say employers can’t turn down job applicants because they use marijuana. In 2019, Nevada passed a similar policy, and in 2018, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed a law making it illegal for employers “to discriminate against a person in hiring, termination, or any term or condition of employment, or otherwise penalize a person” because of off-duty marijuana use.
Several other cannabis and drug policy bills in Washington State have also been moving forward. These include bills to allow marijuana to be sold across state lines and to study the therapeutic use of psilocybin.
But lawmakers didn’t act on a separate bill that would have legalized growing marijuana at home last month. This means that growing plants for personal use is still illegal in the state.
