In enacting the New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act, N.J.S.A. 24:6I-1, et seq., the legislature expressed that “[c]ompassion dictates that a distinction be made between medical and nonmedical uses of marijuana.” N.J.S.A. 24:6I-2(e). The legislature further declared, “[a]lthough federal law currently prohibits the use of marijuana, the laws of [many states] permit the use of marijuana for medical purposes, and … New Jersey joins this effort for the health and welfare of its citizens.” N.J.S.A. 24:6I-2(c). The act took effect on Oct. 1, 2010, yet questions remain.

How much compassion must New Jersey employers show toward employees who use marijuana for medicinal purposes? Are employers legally obligated to help promote the “health and welfare” of their employees by accommodating medical marijuana use? How does the Compassionate Use Act fit within the employment law paradigm? What new rights do employees have under or by virtue of the act (if any)? What are employers to do with employees who test positive for marijuana? Are drug-free and zero-tolerance policies still enforceable? The intersection between the act and the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD), N.J.S.A. 10:5-1, et seq., is particularly confounding. Employers already are required to provide accommodations to qualifying employees for reasons unrelated to the use of medical marijuana. What, now, when medical marijuana is added to the mix?

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