Kohl’s Medical Marijuana Policy Sparks Worker’s Claims

A former Kohl’s employee in California who was fired after testing positive for marijuana may be able to show his discharge violated the department store’s internal policy on medical marijuana use and thus state contract law, a federal judge ruled (Shepherd v. Kohl’s Dep’t Stores, Inc., 2016 BL 249936, E.D. Cal., No. 1:14-cv-01901, 8/2/16).

The case is important because it illustrates that a company’s employment policies may provide workers who use medical marijuana with greater job rights than those provided under anti-bias laws, as well as broader protections against termination than typically afforded under state at-will employment laws, ...