Comment on Oregon lawmakers revisit worker protections for off duty pot use

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Oregon lawmakers will consider making it illegal for businesses to fire employees who flunk drug tests for using marijuana off the clock, reviving a workers’ rights campaign that failed in the statehouse last year. The Statesman Journal reported that a proposed bill would also change state law to protect job seekers who use substances like pot that are legal here. The proposal reflects a debate over whether Oregon workers should be forced to abstain from marijuana use — which is allowed under state law but remains federally illegal — for fear of getting fired or losing an employment offer. Senate Bill 301, which represented a previous attempt to loosen employment restrictions, failed in 2017.