Politics
California Senators Advance Bill To Ratify Labor Agreement Ending Marijuana Tests For Most Correctional Officers
California senators have advanced a bill that includes provisions to ratify a labor agreement ending random drug tests for marijuana among correctional officers in the state’s prison system.
As part of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) that would be ratified by the measure, which cleared the Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee in a unanimous 17-0 vote on Monday, most correctional officers would no longer be randomly tested for cannabis or penalized over off-duty use.
“The parties recognize California law, specifically AB 2188 (Chapter 392, Statutes of 2022), which protects California employees from discrimination based on their off-duty, off-site cannabis use,” a bill analysis says. “As such, the parties agree correctional facilities, units, offices, and anywhere [Bargaining Unit] 6 employees work and interact with supervised/incarcerated individuals will be maintained as a drug-free workplace, consistent with the California Penal Code.”
“Balancing an employer’s right to maintain a safe and secure workplace and [Bargaining Unit] 6 employee’s statutory right to choose to use cannabis off-duty, the parties agree to remove the testing requirement for marijuana/cannabinoids (THC) from the random testing panel,” it says.
The MOU that would be authorized through the bill does, however, stipulate that workers with current marijuana testing requirements for “covered drivers with a commercial driver’s license” will continue to be tested for THC.
California employment policies have continually evolved since the state enacted legalization.
In 2024, a California Assembly committee rejected a Senate-passed bill that sought to roll back existing employment protections for law enforcement workers who legally use marijuana while off the job, failing to advance the measure to the next step of the legislative process.
That came in response to a 2023 development when California law enforcement officials revised employment policies for police officers to remove questions about job applicants’ prior marijuana use in accordance with a bill the governor signed that year.
Also, in late 2023 legislation took effect that made it so most employers in the state became prohibited from asking job applicants about past cannabis use, and most are barred from penalizing employees over lawful use of marijuana outside of the job.
A separate complementary bill that Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed in 2022 says it is unlawful for employers “to discriminate against a person in hiring, termination, or any term or condition of employment, or otherwise penalizing a person, if the discrimination is based upon” off-duty marijuana use or drug tests that reveal cannabinoid metabolites.
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Outside of California,, a federal judge recently struck down a voter-approved Oregon law that required licensed marijuana businesses enter into labor peace agreements with workers and mandated that employers remain neutral in discussions around unionization.
Measure 119 passed with about 57 percent of the vote last November. A regional chapter of United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW)—UFCW Local 555—had submitted more than 160,000 signatures to qualify the measure for ballot placement last year.
In March, the Maryland Senate passed a bill to protect for fire and rescue workers from being penalized for off-duty use of medical marijuana. It now awaits action in the House.
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