ACLU sues Wal-Mart for firing employee using medical marijuana

[copobo]

amazingly, I am hearing allot of employers are fine with MMJ. Of course I am in Boulder County.

ACLU sues Wal-Mart for firing employee using medical marijuana - CNN.com

(CNN) -- The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a lawsuit against Wal-Mart for the termination of a Michigan employee whose doctor verified his illness qualified for medical marijuana use.
Wal-Mart, the nation's largest retailer, fired Joseph Casias in November 2009 after he failed an on-the-job injury-related drug test. Casias suffers from a rare form of cancer in his nasal cavity and brain, and he relied on his doctor's medical marijuana prescription to alleviate the daily pain. Casias is one of about 20,000 legal medical marijuana users in Michigan.
"Medical marijuana has had a life-changing positive effect for Joseph, but Wal-Mart made him pay a stiff and unfair price for his medicine," said Scott Michelman, staff attorney with the ACLU Drug Law Reform Project.
"No patient should be forced to choose between adequate pain relief and gainful employment, and no employer should be allowed to intrude upon private medical choices made by employees in consultation with their doctors," Michelman said.
Wal-Mart officials say they are sympathetic to Casias' condition, but the company needed to put the safety of its customers and associates first.
"As more states allow this treatment, employers are left without any guidelines except the federal standard," wrote Lorenzo Lopez, a director of media relations at Wal-Mart, in an e-mail to CNN. "In these cases, until further guidance is available, we will always default to what we believe is the safest environment for our associates and customers."
The ACLU's lawsuit, filed in Calhoun County Circuit Court in Michigan, comes at a time when the controversy over medical marijuana is still being debated in many states. To date, 14 states have laws allowing the use of medical marijuana, which protect legal users from criminalization. But the laws are murky when it comes to protecting users from termination by their employers in some states.
Casias told CNN in March that he never arrived at work high and used the medical marijuana only outside of his work hours.
Michigan is an at-will employment state, which means employers can terminate a worker for any reason except for being in a federally protected class such as race, gender and religion. The ACLU is arguing legal medical marijuana users should also be protected under a Michigan law.
"I was angry they did this to me because I always tried my best," Casias said to CNN in March. He had worked for Wal-Mart for nearly five years to support his wife and two young children. He started at the company as a grocery store stocker in 2004 before moving up to become an inventory control manager. He earned an Associate of the Year Award at Wal-Mart in 2008, a year before his termination
He has battled with his cancer for more than a decade. The lawsuit says the medical marijuana was able to provide him with pain relief.

copobo Reviewed by copobo on 06-29-2010. ACLU sues Wal-Mart for firing employee using medical marijuana amazingly, I am hearing allot of employers are fine with MMJ. Of course I am in Boulder County. ACLU sues Wal-Mart for firing employee using medical marijuana - CNN.com (CNN) -- The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a lawsuit against Wal-Mart for the termination of a Michigan employee whose doctor verified his illness qualified for medical marijuana use. Wal-Mart, the nation's largest retailer, fired Joseph Casias in November 2009 after he failed an on-the-job injury-related drug Rating: 5

[canaguy27]

here we go. of course they had to pick the DEEPEST POCKET EVER to go up against to set some case law. fingers crossed

[cologrower420]

here we go. of course they had to pick the DEEPEST POCKET EVER to go up against to set some case law. fingers crossed

As long as pot is illegal at the federal level, then walmart was following the law and isn't liable in that regard.

If the result is to raise awareness or seek a settlement, than it might succeed in that sense, but there is just no way the aclu thinks it wins this case.

I didn't click the link though.

[neversummer]

I can fire someone because i dont like the way they look. That is the great part of owning your own business and being the boss, you get to hire and fire your employees. No one has a right to work anywhere. This suing shit is ridiculous. That guy should find a job where they are cool with mmj. Fuck walmart

[copobo]

lol, no, you can't fire someone for the way they look (except during the first 90 days usually)

And for employers of that size, there are many rules and you can certainly sue.

[PolishPotFarmer]

Colorado is an 'employment at will' state which means you can be fired for any reason or NO reason at all. Including looking funny. :hippy:

[copobo]

not sure about MI, but it isn't that simple.

Employment
At Will

In the majority of states, employees not working under an employment contract are deemed to be "at will." At-will employees may be terminated for any reason, so long as it's not illegal. There are numerous illegal reasons for termination. Typically such reasons fall into one of two large categories: illegal discrimination or illegal termination in violation of a public policy. Generally, employees who work under an employment contract can only be terminated for reasons specified in the contract.

In Colorado, there are two exceptions to the at-will rule based upon the legal principles of "public policy" and "implied contract." First, the public policy exception simply means that an employee cannot be fired for performing a legal duty or exercising a legal right. Second, a binding employment relationship may be found to have been created by an implied or an express contract. The contract theory usually arises in situations in which procedures outlined in personnel handbooks are construed as a contract between the employer and employee.

and Matt - FUCK OFF YOU SELL OUT!

[HighPopalorum]

I can fire someone because i dont like the way they look.

Sort of.... as copobo says, Colorado, as well as Michigan, is an at will employment state. You can fire people for most any reason other than age, race, gender, religion, national origin or disability. I'm not an attorney, but many MMJ patients are medically disabled, and it might be possible some kind of case could be made on those grounds.

[HighPopalorum]

I just read the complaint. It's interesting reading.

[cologrower420]

Since walmart is operating across state lines, wouldn't federal laws apply, which state marijuana is an illegal controlled substance? Therefor according to federal law, Walmart is legally allowed to fire employees who fail drug tests.

I'm sure they'll settle to keep things quiet, but I still don't think state medical marijuana laws apply here.

Don't those just allow an affirmative defense of a crime (state level)? What crime did this guy commit? Why would state medical marijuana laws apply in this scenario?