Amazon, the second-largest private employer in the U.S. announced today that they’re no longer testing job seekers for marijuana use. This comes as states introduce laws banning employers from testing for it and a lawsuit from March—a New York man sued saying the company rescinded his job offer because he tested positive for weed—despite the fact that the city banned employers from testing job applicants for cannabis last year.
“This decision reflects today’s changing cultural landscape,” says NORML Deputy Director, Paul Armentano. “Suspicionless marijuana testing in the workplace, such as pre-employment drug screening, is not now, nor has it ever been, an evidence-based policy. Rather, this discriminatory practice is a holdover from the zeitgeist of the 1980s ‘war on drugs.’ But times have changed; attitudes have changed, and in many places, the marijuana laws have changed. It is time for workplace policies to adapt to this new reality and to cease punishing employees for activities they engage in during their off-hours that pose no workplace safety threat. Several states, like Nevada and New York, have moved in this direction — as have numerous cities, like Atlanta and Philadelphia — and it is no surprise to see major employers moving in this same, common-sense direction.”
Of course, not all Amazon employees will be exempt from testing as some roles still require weed tests that fall in line with Department of Transportation regulations. And they’ll still spring “impairment checks” on the job to catch anyone working high.
Amazon also said that it supports the federal legalization of marijuana. Proof? They’re pushing lawmakers to pass the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act of 2021, that was reintroduced in the House late last month. The MORE Act would decriminalize cannabis at the federal level, expunge criminal records and invest in impacted communities.
“We implore Amazon and other employers to let this be the starting point and not the goal post,” says Kassandra Frederique, Executive Director of the Drug Policy Alliance. “This change can and should be the catalyst to a much larger move—ending drug testing for all drugs—that would ensure a more just and equitable future for millions of people, especially Black, Brown and Indigenous communities who have been disproportionately impacted by these policies.”
For those that are worried about drug testing in the workplace we always recommend Green Gone Detox. It’s an all-natural permanent THC cleanse unlike THC detox drinks which are typically “masking” agents—meaning they don’t physically pull THC metabolites out of your system permanently.
Anyhow, the MORE Act is a huge step forward in eliminating one of the main ways the drug war has robbed so many of their livelihoods. Drug testing has never provided an accurate indication of a person’s ability to perform their job, and yet this incredibly invasive practice has locked out millions of people who use drugs—both licit and illicit—from the workplace.
Have you ever been denied a job or lost a job as a result of testing positive for marijuana? Please let us know in the comments section below.
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