Career Advice - Drugs at Work

How to Handle Medical Marijuana and the Office

By
Relationship Advice Expert April Masini

Q: Dear April Masini,

I am the head of human resources for a small company in a state where marijuana prescribed by doctors for medical use is legal. We have a cancer patient on staff, and he has received a prescription for marijuana that he needs to smoke during work hours. We're a non-smoking building and I'm worried that the scent of marijuana would give off an obviously wrong--but still negative--impression.

How does all this work?

Sincerely,

Human Resources 

A:

Dear Human Resources,

Medical marijuana should present no more problem in the workplace than any other medication -- in fact, it should be treated exactly the same way. If marijuana is legal and prescribed by a doctor for a condition like glaucoma, a neurological disease, cancer or something else, then the patient and the medical treatment should be allowed.

That said, if any drug impairs work and workplace behavior, then human resources and/or personnel need to conference with the employee about how to make the workplace productive while not hindering the employee's prescribed medical treatment. For instance, if a patient is prescribed Vicodan or Percocet by a dentist for dental work that has been done, and the employee is allowed by the doctor to go to work, and to take these pain killers, but they decrease the employee's productivity and compromise his or her behavior, then the employee should be given sick leave to continue medical treatment out of the office and return when the treatment is complete. There are lots of prescription medications that have side effects that make patients drowsy, cranky, nauseous, jittery, non-alert, etc. And often these anti-biotics or pain killers or other kinds of medicine are legal and prescribed, but can affect workplace performance and behavior. Medical marijuana should be dealt with by employers the same way prescibed Vicodan, Percocet, or other medications would be dealt with.

April Masini -- nicknamed "the new millennium's Dear Abby" by the media, is author of the best-selling books Date Out Of Your League and Think & Date Like A Man, the two (just released) step-by-step dating and relationship manuals, Ideas for a Fun Date and Romantic Date Ideas, and the critically acclaimed dating and relationship online magazine www.AskApril.com.

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