Medical marijuana may be prescribed for several medical reasons. Under human rights law in Ontario, workers have a right not to be discriminated against on the grounds of ‘disability’ which encompasses illness. The use of medicinal marijuana in the workplace must be treated the same as any other prescription drug that a worker uses for a medical condition. In order to use medicinal marijuana in the workplace, the employee must provide medical documentation stating the nature of the disability (reason for use), and whether he/she is able to safely work while using medicinal marijuana while requesting accommodation.
Under human rights law, employers must accommodate an employee with a disability up to the point of ‘undue hardship’. In safety sensitive workplaces, accommodation may present increased challenges for employers. Under occupational health and safety law, workers cannot be a threat to their own safety or the safety of others within the workplace. An employer must, therefore, balance the duty to accommodate and the need to maintain a safe working environment.
There is no blanket standard that can be applied with regards to accommodation of medicinal marijuana use in safety sensitive workplaces. Each case must be examined in relation to the worker’s needs, the work duties and organization of work, and other factors that may have an effect on accommodation. For instance, the interconnectedness of work roles on an assembly line may present greater difficulties in terms of granting a worker the time needed to take prescribed usage of marijuana. If usage requires inhalation, then the worker must be relieved by another available worker that can perform the same role. This is because inhalation must be done in a designated smoking area. Accommodation efforts in this hypothetical may raise question such as: can other workers that can perform the same role be made available at all times? Can the marijuana be taken by ingestion with food while on the assembly line? Does being under the influence raise a health and safety concern? Can this worker be retrained for other similar roles that would alleviate potential health and safety and/or accommodation issues? With regards to the worker’s ability to perform the job duties without any concern for health and safety while under the influence, the worker’s physician must provide documentation showing that there are no issues.
The above was only one of many different scenarios that may arise. Employers are advised to have sufficient workplace policies with regards to prescription medication and workplace safety. This includes having procedures for reporting the use of medicinal marijuana and requesting accommodation, proper procedures for using medicinal marijuana when needed, and defining what is considered impairment with regards to health and safety matters. This is by no means a comprehensive guide. The consultation of an employment law expert should be sought so that unnecessary and costly future litigation is avoided for failing to accommodate up to ‘undue hardship’.