By Josh Kelety | Phoenix New Times
In the November 2020 general election, Arizona voters approved, by a large margin, Proposition 207, a ballot measure that would legalize recreational marijuana. You can now legally possess cannabis, grow it, and smoke it, if you’re at least 21. You’ll soon be able to buy it in stores.
But you can absolutely still get fired for consuming recreational cannabis — even if that innocent, carefree toke is on your own time. The only exception is if you have a prescription for medical marijuana, which has its own set of legal protections under Prop 203, which was passed in 2010.
As written, Prop 207 does “not restrict” employers from maintaining a “drug-and-alcohol-free workplace” or “affect the ability of employers to have workplace policies restricting the use of marijuana by employees or prospective employees.”
“Arizona is an at-will employment state. That means employers are free to hire or let go employees for almost any reason,” said Jon Udell, a spokesperson for Arizona NORML (a pro-cannabis legalization group) and attorney at Rose Law Group. “They can terminate whoever they want or refuse to hire them for any reason, including cannabis consumption, whether it be off-duty or on-duty.”
