Pubdate: Tue, 16 Jun 2015
Source: Boston Globe (MA)
Copyright: 2015 Associated Press
Contact: http://services.bostonglobe.com/news/opeds/letter.aspx?id=6340
Website: http://bostonglobe.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/52
Author: Kristen Wyatt, Associated Press

WORKERS CAN BE FIRED FOR USING POT OFF-DUTY, COLO. COURT RULES

DENVER (AP) - Pot may be legal in Colorado, but you can still be 
fired for using it.

The state Supreme Court ruled 6 to 0 Monday that a medical marijuana 
patient who was fired after failing a drug test cannot get his job 
back. The case was being watched closely by employers and pot smokers 
in states that have legalized medical or recreational marijuana.

Colorado became at least the fourth state in which courts have ruled 
against medical marijuana patients fired for pot use. Supreme courts 
in California, Montana, and Washington have made similar rulings, and 
federal courts in Colorado and Michigan also have rejected such claims.

The Colorado worker, Brandon Coats, a quadriplegic, was fired by Dish 
Network after failing a 2010 drug test. The company agreed Coats 
wasn't high on the job but said it has a zero-tolerance drug policy.

Coats argued his pot smoking was allowed under a state law intended 
to protect employees from being fired for legal activities off the 
clock. Coats didn't use marijuana at work, but it's intoxicating 
chemical, THC, can stay in the system for weeks.

The Colorado justices ruled that because marijuana is illegal under 
federal law, Coats's use of the drug couldn't be considered legal 
off-duty activity.

"There is no exception for marijuana use for medicinal purposes, or 
for marijuana use conducted in accordance with state law," the court wrote.

Coats and his lawyers said the decision at least clarified the matter 
for workers.

"Although I'm very disappointed today, I hope that my case has 
brought the issue of use of medical marijuana and employment to 
light," Coats said in a statement.

Dish Network and other business groups applauded the ruling.

"As a national employer, Dish remains committed to a drug-free 
workplace and compliance with federal law," company spokesman John 
Hall said in a statement.

Twenty-three states and Washington, D.C., allow people to use medical 
marijuana. Alaska, Colorado, Oregon, Washington state, and 
Washington, D.C., have legalized recreational marijuana.

The Colorado Constitution specifically states that employers don't 
have to amend their policies to accommodate employees' marijuana use.

Coats was paralyzed in a car crash as a teenager. He was a telephone 
operator with Dish for three years.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom