South Dakota has amended its medical cannabis law to authorize certain employer actions regarding the use of cannabis by an employee or a prospective employee. Specifically, based solely on a positive test result for cannabis metabolites, employers may take adverse employment actions or refuse to hire a person if the person is seeking employment in a safety-sensitive job.
Additionally, the amended law clarifies that, regarding the ingestion of cannabis at the workplace, no cause of action is available for employment discrimination or wrongful termination arising from an employer’s enforcement of a drug-free workplace policy in compliance with the state’s medical cannabis law.
The amended law takes effect on July 1, 2024.
