“Just as patients taking traditional medications do not face punishment in the workplace unless their on-the-job performance is impaired, those who use medical cannabis during their off-hours should not face sanctions solely because of their status as a medical marijuana patient.”
“We have corrected an injustice where our employees were being unjustly punished and potentially having their careers destroyed for responsibly utilizing a legal substance on their own time.”
Since 2020, over 139,000 commercially licensed truckers have tested positive on urine tests for past cannabis exposure, resulting in an industry-wide labor shortage.
More than 150,000 licensed drivers have left the profession in recent years because of these zero-tolerance workplace drug testing policies.
“As laws to overturn prohibition continue to take shape across this nation, legislatures should not forget that other policies must also be revised to keep up with the times. The discrimination against cannabis users in the workplace is one of those policies it is time to update.”
South Carolina is one of only a dozen states that has yet to implement a comprehensive medical cannabis access program.
The new law states, “It is unlawful for an employer to discriminate against a person in the initial hiring for employment if the discrimination is based upon the person’s use of cannabis off the job and away from the workplace.”
Starting January 1st, most employers will no longer be able to either fire or refuse to hire someone based solely upon their cannabis use history.