The ongoing drive to make marijuana mainstream throughout the U.S. continues running into roadblocks. As those roadblocks are overcome, we are getting ever closer to the day when marijuana is treated just like alcohol. One of the roadblocks currently being addressed is employment discrimination at the federal level. The Senate is now looking at a bill that would create employment protections.

As things currently stand, federal agencies can deny both employment and security clearances based on a person’s past history with marijuana. Not that they do so on a regular basis, but they can if need be. As long as marijuana remains a Schedule I controlled substance, federal agencies are well within their rights to consider marijuana consumption in employment decisions.

What the Proposed Legislation Does

Sen. Gary Peters hopes to begin removing the federal employment roadblock with his bill, aptly named the DOOBIE Act. If passed, the legislation would mandate an end to current employment discrimination. Federal agencies would no longer be able to make employment or security clearance decisions based solely on past marijuana consumption.

It is worth noting that Peters’ bill is not the first one to address federal employment discrimination against marijuana users. Several other lawmakers have introduced similar bills over the years. Unfortunately, the bills always seem to get bogged down in committee or attached to legislation that ultimately fails. Will the Peters bill be any different? Time will tell.

This would all become a moot point if Congress would move to legalize marijuana across the board. That is not likely to happen anytime soon. However, marijuana could be moved to Schedule III by the end of the year. That could ultimately lead to federally legal marijuana prescriptions which would then open a whole new can of worms in the employment realm.

The States Are Doing It, Too

While we keep an eye on what federal lawmakers do with the DOOBIE Act, we would also be wise to take a look at what states are doing. Slowly but surely, states with legalized marijuana have begun working on workplace protections. Utah is an excellent example.

The operators of Brigham City’s Beehive Farmacy explain that Utah is a medical-only state. Until a few years ago, medical cannabis users did not enjoy any workplace protections. Beehive Farmacy operators say that all changed when a firefighter’s job was put in jeopardy.

Apparently, upon discovering that the firefighter possessed a valid Utah medical cannabis card, his employer instigated disciplinary proceedings. The man’s livelihood was threatened. State lawmakers stepped in during the next legislative session and created a new law requiring that all public sector employers treat medical cannabis like any other prescription medication. Only a small number of employers were exempted, among them being law enforcement agencies.

Lawmakers went a step further during the 2024 legislative session to strengthen the original law. Under the beefed-up rules, public sector employers cannot exercise disciplinary actions related to medical cannabis if such actions differ in any way from those that might be taken against users of other prescription drugs.

Such Laws Are Inevitable

At this point, workplace protection laws from marijuana users are inevitable. Legalization is an unstoppable train that will ultimately lead to significant changes in federal law. Lawmakers have no choice but to begin preparing for that future now. Workplace protection rules are part of those preparations.

Will the Peters bill ever see the light of day? Who knows? It will have to make the long end slow journey through committee before being presented to the full Senate. The bill could die at any point along the way.