New marijuana law won’t change drug-testing

With the recreational use of marijuana becoming legal in just about two weeks, the Vermont Attorney General’s Office is offering some advice to employers on how to deal with the change in the law. The bottom line: Don’t do anything differently. “In short, very little is changing,” said Assistant Attorney General Emily Adams of the

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Background check best practices

Businesses are struggling to balance the need to verify applicants’ background and experience against a rising tide of legislation, litigation and public scrutiny. From ban-the-box laws to contested federal guidance, the limits on employers can be confusing. But with a vast majority of resumes estimated to include misinformation, employers understandably feel a need to conduct some

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CPS workers to undergo fresh background checks

Thousands of adults who work in Chicago Public Schools will undergo fresh background checks this summer prior to the coming academic term, the school district announced as part of a large-scale effort to obtain updated information about workers’ backgrounds following a Tribune investigation. That means teachers, coaches, volunteers, vendors and other workers who regularly work inside of CPS

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Medical marijuana licensees a new protected class

Oklahoma employers are already prohibited from using gender, race, religion and age as reasons not to hire someone. But now, Oklahoma voters have created a new class of specially protected employees — medical marijuana licensees. Under State Question 788, which was approved by voters June 26, employers cannot discriminate against someone who holds a medical marijuana license.

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Employee Drug Use and What You Should Know

For those left wondering what is really going on in the complicated world of employee drug use (illegal, legal, and “semi-legal”), I thought I would spend this episode of Letter of the Law highlighting a few issues employers face when they know of or suspect drug use by their employees. 1. Drug Testing – Whether and

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