Columbia, MO: Those seeking employment for most citywide jobs will no longer have to undergo pre-employment testing for marijuana, following the adoption of new rules enacted by members of the Columbia City Council.
The new policy takes effect on October 1st. The new rules will apply to those seeking non-safety sensitive positions. Those who apply for jobs that require a commercial driver’s license (CDL), or who are seeking employment as uniformed police or fire personnel, will continue to be tested.
Under the city’s previous rules, job applicants who tested positive for past cannabis use faced a mandatory five-year ban from citywide employment.
Missouri voters passed an adult-use legalization initiative in 2022. However, unlike similar laws recently enacted in several other states, the initiative did not include provisions protecting workers who consume cannabis non-medically while away from their workplace. That said, at least two other Missouri cities – Kansas City and St. Louis – have enacted similar local ordinances limiting pre-employment testing for marijuana.
Several states – including Michigan, Nevada, and Washington – similarly prohibit pre-employment marijuana screening for non-safety sensitive positions. Other jurisdictions, including California, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Montana, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, and Rhode Island have expanded these policies to limit cannabis testing for both new hires and existing employees.
NORML’s Deputy Director Paul Armentano praised the pending policy change, stating: “Neither prospective nor current employees should be discriminated against for their off-the-job consumption of cannabis. Employees who use cannabis in their off-hours are no less productive than their peers and they do not possess any elevated occupational safety risk. Workers should have the same right to use cannabis as they have to use other legal substances while they are off the job.”
Missouri NORML’s State Coordinator Dan Viets, a criminal defense attorney and NORML Board Member who resides in Columbia, said, “This policy change makes sense since these tests cannot identify those impaired by cannabis.”
He added: “There is actually no valid reason to continue testing those applying for safety sensitive jobs either. These applicants and employees are allowed to use alcohol off the job. That should be of greater concern than cannabis use.”
Additional information is available from the NORML Fact Sheet, ‘Marijuana Legalization and Impact on the Workplace.’