Canadian employers facing marijuana challenges in the workplace
Canadian employers are already coping with approximately 75,000 Canadians authorized to use medical marijuana. Health Canada expects that this number will increase to about 450,000 by 2024.
Employers know that medical marijuana is a psychoactive drug prescribed to deal with medical conditions and accordingly, since many of those medical conditions constitute a disability (which employers are bound to accommodate to the point of undue hardship) medical marijuana typically necessitates an assessment and accommodative approach.
The next challenge facing Canadian employers will come with the federal government’s promise to introduce legislation in the spring of 2017 to legalize marijuana. The Task Force led by former Deputy Prime Minister Anne McLellan has circulated a discussion paper entitled “Towards the Legalization, Regulation and Restriction of Access to Marijuana”.
In the recent US election, the State of California opted for legalizing marijuana. This puts America on the road to allowing 1 in 5 Americans to legally use marijuana.
Employers will have to be mindful of the consequences of legalization of marijuana. Detecting marijuana usage and impairment is a lot more complicated than detecting alcohol use or drunkenness. Canadian employers will want to learn more about the topic and engage with lawmakers.
Archive
Kathleen Leighton Employers in Canada are obligated to only employ individuals who are legally able to work for them. Individuals who are neither citizens nor permanent residents of Canada, but who wish to work in…
Read MoreTwila Reid, Jennifer Taylor and Richard Jordan The Supreme Court of Canada has revolutionized administrative law (again) with its new standard of review decision, Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) v Vavilov. The decision reflects…
Read MoreJonathan Coady, QC and Michael Fleischmann Once again, the time has come to review the year that was and to chart the course for the year ahead. For municipalities and planning professionals in Prince Edward Island,…
Read MoreWe are pleased to present Beyond the border, a quarterly publication aimed at providing the latest information to clients about new programs and other immigration-related information that may be pertinent to employers of foreign workers…
Read MoreWe are pleased to present the fifth issue of Discovery, our very own legal publication targeted to educational institutions in Atlantic Canada. As the pace around campus turns up as universities and colleges begin a…
Read MoreLevel Chan and Dante Manna On October 31, 2019, the Supreme Court of Canada issued its decision in Threlfall v Carleton University, 2019 SCC 50, dismissing an appeal from the Quebec Court of Appeal. Carleton…
Read MoreAndrew Burke, Colleen Keyes and David Slipp Starting January 1, 2020 “Distributing Corporations” under the Canada Business Corporations Act (“CBCA”) will be subject to new disclosure requirements relating to the diversity of directors and senior…
Read MoreDaniela Bassan Last month, the Supreme Court of Canada released its much-anticipated decision in Keatley Surveying Ltd. v Teranet Inc., 2019 SCC 43. This was a certified class proceeding on behalf of all land surveyors…
Read MoreKillian McParland With the federal election coming up next week on October 21, 2019, it is a good time for a reminder of the employer obligations under the Canada Elections Act. Employees who are eligible…
Read MoreJohn Samms The upcoming federal election is drawing near. You may be thinking about exercising your democratic and constitutional right to vote – you may not be. You may never even consider participating in the…
Read More