California bill would ban most pre-employment drug tests for marijuana
March 1st 2021 by Chip Yost & Kristine de Leon
A new bill introduced in the state legislature seeks to prohibit California workplaces from using evidence of past marijuana use — such as that gathered during a urine or hair test — as a reason to deny someone a job. The effort comes five years after Californians voted to legalize recreational weed. But for many seeking jobs in state government, cannabis use can be an obstacle to getting hired. Job applicants in the private sector who use marijuana on their personal time can also be disqualified. Legalization advocates, including a legislator, are calling on the state to change employment laws. Critics say that the urine or hair tests can be used to show that a person has consumed marijuana in the past, but not whether they are actively intoxicated with THC, the drug’s chief psychoactive ingredient.