Man Claims Wrongful Termination For Using Medical Marijuana

[Ganjarden]

MT - A man who is HIV-positive is suing Loaf-n-Jug, claiming he was wrongfully terminated because he used medical marijuana.

Mike Babbitt is seeking $500,000 in damages from the company, which is a division of the Cincinnati-based Kroger Company. Babbitt says he was discriminated against, lost wages and suffered other monetary damages.

Loaf-n-Jug Arthur Stawski said the company does not comment on pending litigation.

The complaint filed earlier this month says Babbitt was hired by a Loaf-n-Jug in Great Falls in August and informed management that he is a qualified to receive medical marijuana. Babbitt was told he could be employed if he provided a clean pre-employment drug test.

When Babbitt told management he received his medical marijuana card, he was told it was no problem, the complaint states. But Babbitt was fired in November after a drug test from the previous month showed the presence of marijuana.

Babbitt wasn't allowed to present an explanation for the test results, the complaint states.

Babbitt's attorney is Mark Frisbie. The complaint states that Loaf-n-Jug's drug policy prohibits employees from using illegal drugs at work or while reporting to work, but Babbitt's marijuana use falls under the company's definition of legal medication.

"Defendant's policy ... defines legal medications as 'prescribed and over-the-counter medications which have been legally obtained and are being used for the purpose for which they are prescribed or manufactured."

Babbitt wasn't using medical marijuana at work or during working hours and that his marijuana use didn't affect his ability to work, the complaints states, adding that it is illegal to discriminate against someone using "a lawful product that is legally consumed."


NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 Magazine - Cannabis Culture News & Reviews
Source: Great Falls Tribune
Author: TRAVIS COLEMAN
Copyright: 2010 Great Falls Tribune

 

[TorturedSoul]

prohibits employees from using illegal drugs at work or while reporting to work

Which NO drug test (that I am aware of) can determine. A test can only determine whether or not a person has used (tested for) drugs at some undetermined time within the balloon-period encompassed by the test.

Aside from the fact that I believe that such testing is wrong for that and other reasons, I simply do not understand how they ever became legal in the first place (aside from that disgusting but probably accurate answer, "It had to do with the political climate at the time that drug testing came about.")

If I am an employer, barring certain narrow-focus situations - such as jobs that deal with "national security," I may not make a prospective employee submit to a polygraph test so that I can ask him/her such questions such as, "Do you foresee any situation in which you might decide to steal office supplies from my company?" or, "Do you believe it is possible that you will one day come to work and in some fashion assault another employee or your employer?" even though such workplace behaviors seem to be far more statistically-likely than for an employee to in any way cause harm to the business, himself, or others if he/she has used cannabis (medical or otherwise) in the past, the night before, on the way to work that morning, on his lunch break, or while sitting at his desk!

An employer may require a current employee to submit to a polygraph under certain (again, narrow-focus) circumstances which for the sake of brevity I shall label "just cause."

I feel that a pre-employment drug screen should no longer be allowed for any jobs/situations in which a pre-employment polygraph is not allowed. I also feel that a drug screen should not be allowed for a current employee unless and until he/she is found to be in a situation which falls under the same "just cause" guidelines that a polygraph is allowed. My reasons are many. Chiefest among them is that a positive result on a drug screen in either a prospective employee or a current one by itself has NO BEARING WHATSOEVER on his/her on-the-job performance, likelihood of theft from the business or its customers, chances of committing an assault or other crime, et cetera! NONE! (In fact, in many cases, I would suggest the opposite holds true, as the happy and well-adjusted employee is always going to be the better-performing one.) Additionally, the single-most important thing in a workplace - or any other - relationship is trust, and the drug screening process is not only not a positive influence on this, it is a hindrance - even a barrier - to it.

I call upon everyone who reads this post, be they in one of the 14 "medical" states or not, to write ALL of their political representatives, from the President of these United States, their Senators and Representatives in Washington DC, their governor and other state representatives, down to and including their local mayors, councilmen, and all other elected officials and express their opinions on this. As members of a representative democracy it is their mandate to follow their constituents' wishes regardless of their personal views.

I would ask that you send all such correspondence registered, return-receipt requested if your financial situation allows, so as to leave a "paper trail." But I understand that thanks in no small part to these same elected officials that in these tough economic times such multiple mailings may constitute an undue financial burden when so many are struggling to simply put food on the table for their children. Still, I beg of you all to do what you can, as you can, when you can. Not only this would I ask of you, but additionally I would ask that you write "open letters" to all newspaper and other print publications in your area stating the same thing - and that you have also written to your elected officials. I would additionally ask that you ask all of your friends and family members to do the same. Or, if the fear of persecution in your community is so great that you feel that harm in some form will come to you for doing what is your simple legal right, I ask that you print up as many copies of this as you can and either pass them out or anonymously deliver them to mailboxes, windshields, et cetera and that you also physically post copies of them in any public location that it is legal for you to do so.

Thank you.