A Cal NORML-sponsored law that passed last year (AB 2188 Quirk – Govt. Code 12954), makes it unlawful for employers to discriminate against workers in hiring or employment based on their “use of cannabis off the job and away from the workplace,” effective January 1, 2024.

Some employers have a policy of asking prospective employees about their prior use of cannabis. This practice is clearly inconsistent with the intent of AB 2188, since prior use of cannabis is irrelevant to a worker’s present use of cannabis on the job or in the workplace.  

SB 700 addresses this problem by explicitly making it unlawful for employers to “request information from an applicant for employment relating to the applicant’s prior use of cannabis.”  

Someone's past use of cannabis has nothing to do with their fitness to work. Please write a letter to your legislator asking them to pass SB 700 to protect the employment rights of those who choose to use cannabis off the job.