Cannabis Workplace Smoking Rooms?

While the once omnipresent employee smoking lounge has been all but obliterated in the American workplace, is it possible that such a place could reemerge with the growing ubiquity and acceptance of cannabis? I’m not saying that I’m holding my breath for recreational pot smoking areas or even something on par with a cigarette break. Though I personally see the meritorious parts of cannabis-breaks in the workplace, I have a very hard time believing we will ever see something like that.

But what about medical marijuana? If it continues to gain traction and legitimacy, how long can employers justifiably deny a medical marijuana patient from medicating at work? A person on a doctor’s prescription or a diabetic is allowed to expect reasonable accommodations be made so that they may work. A hand rail in the bathroom or a ramp for a wheelchair are under the purview of the American’s with Disabilities Act.

If someone has a crippling need to use cannabis to function, does it not border on discrimination to disallow their access to medicine? For that matter, why doesn’t refusing to even consider medical marijuana patients as candidates for employment qualify as discrimination?

We may get a glimpse into how this could pan out, thanks to our friends to the North. Canadian lawmakers are struggling with how to proceed on just this topic:

“’We think this is going to be a big issue,’ said Kecia Podetz, a partner at Ottawa’s Emond Harnden LLP specializing in employment law. ‘There is an immediate reaction, because historically we don’t allow employees to smoke marijuana in the workplace. But, once you get past that and think, ‘this is a prescription from a doctor and it must be treated like any other prescription,’ all the usual accommodations come into play.’ Employers have a legal obligation to accommodate their employees when it comes to sickness or disability in the workplace. The obligation is enshrined in the Canadian Human Rights act as well as the Occupational, Health and Safety Act and is known as an employers’ “duty to accommodate” employees with special needs.”

I also think that weed could and should replace the “cigarette break” of yesteryear. This cannot be said of all jobs, but I have worked with plenty of cigarette smokers who would get so agitated in the throes of a nicotine fit that we literally had to send them out of the room to take a drag and get their shit together. I ask again, why shouldn’t this apply to cannabis? What if the office rage-a-holic who treats everyone like a nuisance smoked a little puff and began treating his coworkers with respect? There are countless situations where this can apply.

When I was a chef, it was common for the bartender to bring beers to the cooks during particularly busy times and, certainly, we were given beer after the rush while we closed down. It was a great little thing to look forward to and boosted morale across the board. I envision being able to do this with marijuana. I would love to be able to leave work and smoke a bowl on my walk to the bus or take a little puff on my lunch break. In truth, these are things I could probably do, but I would have to do it secretly. But if it was a cigarette and I wasn’t within 30 feet of a doorway, I would be just fine.

It’s not to bemoan cigarettes. There are no lies to expose or anything like that, even every smoker knows how terrible they are. I’m looking for equitable treatment.

For now, let’s watch the Canadians and see how they push through. But I am at least one person who hopes the workplace cannabis lounge becomes more than just a dream.