An Oct. 14, 2022, Law360 Employment Authority article titled “New Calif. Law Employers Should Have On Their Radar,” examined five consequential laws recently passed in California.
Quoted extensively for the article, Partner Sylvia Kim offered insights on new state laws protecting employees who use marijuana when they are off the clock; allowing workers to take job-protected leave to care for people who fall outside the traditional definition of family; and giving employees the right to leave work or refuse to come to work if they feel unsafe in emergency situations.
Kim told Law360 that A.B. 2188, an amendment to the Fair Employment and Housing Act, means that employers will no longer be allowed penalize or refuse to hire workers who use marijuana off the clock. Prior to its passage, they could do so because, while cannabis use was legal under state law, it continues to be illegal under federal law.
Read the article.