Monday, November 14, 2016

Week 6 EOC, Weed in the workplace

Weed in the Culinary Workplace

            With the growing trend for states to legalize the medical use and also the recreational use of marijuana, there has been a topic that has been more and more in the spotlight.  How do employers drug test effect employment for their companies? According to SAPAA, there were 13.1 million employed drug abusers in the U.S. in 2007, with food and construction industries leading the way. “In a 6-0 decision, the high court affirmed lower court rulings that businesses can fire employees for the use of medical marijuana — even if it’s off-duty.” 

            I think the big issue with employers with dealing with productivity as well as safety, especially the leading industry of drug abuser in 2007 being the Food industry.  Several issues you could run into with the culinary workplace work productivity.  When under the influence of marijuana it can have effects that slow down motor function and reaction time. Being in an industry such as food and working with sharp tools, you can see how this can be and issue with most, if not all employers. Most of the results of an employee making a mistake can come with consequences for them and the employer. “if you make a mistake, you can find yourself in court”


With the legalization of marijuana grown across the country, a bigger spotlight is being put on rules and regulations. More and more employers are implementing stricter and clearer rules to weed in the workplace, which they should for the simple fact that a lot of people can get hurt or even result in legal ramifications. Though I don’t disagree with the recently growing laws of recreational use of marijuana, I do believe we need to put into place specific laws addressing when and how it can be used as well as develop some sort of test to can come up with some sort of time line when last used, like a breathalyzer with the use of alcohol   

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