I have long feared getting fired from my job because I consume marijuana. It is a fear that most working cannabis consumers have to worry about constantly. Cannabis consumers can be fired for consuming cannabis even in states where medical and/or recreational marijuana are legal. Cannabis consumers can be fired from jobs even if there is no proof of impairment while on the clock. My work recently came out with a policy that we can consume marijuana at night and on the weekends (but not before work, or on breaks or lunches), which for the most part is great. But if I were to get in an accident on the job, I would be drug tested (even if the accident wasn’t my fault) and would lose my job after they found THC in my system. So even in a state like Oregon, where recreational marijuana is legal, and my work says I can even consume it under certain circumstances, there is still a chance that I could be fired for consuming marijuana within the last thirty days or so of the drug test.
Cyd Maurer is an example of someone who was wrongfully terminated from her job in Oregon. Cyd Maurer worked for a news agency in Eugene, Oregon, and after getting in an automobile accident while traveling for work purposes, failed a drug test and was fired. But the media company’s loss has become the cannabis movement’s gain, because now Cyd Maurer is getting very active in the cannabis reform movement. She will be speaking at the Oregon Medical Marijuana Business Conference which takes place next month at the Hilton in Portland, Oregon. Per Marijuana Politics:
Cyd Maurer, who made national headlines after being unjustly fired for using marijuana on her own personal time, will be speaking at the Oregon Medical Marijuana Business Conference (OMMBC) in Portland, September 12-13. Specifically, Ms. Maurer will be on a media panel providing insight into how the TV news media works, very valuable information for both cannabis advocates and marijuana businesses. Television, and the local news, are still instrumental media outlets for the burgeoning cannabis industry as so much of what local marijuana businesses do is very news-worthy as opening up a dispensary or hosting a benefit for veterans that utilize medical cannabis marks a shift in culture and could very well be the first time such an event has happened in the locale.
Fortunately, for the cannabis community, Cyd has taken a rather unfortunate personal ordeal and has turned it into a positive for the marijuana movement. While ending criminal arrests and prosecutions are the first step towards equality, there are several more steps to go, including the ability of cannabis consumers to use cannabis on their own personal time, just as alcohol drinkers are allowed, particularly in jobs that aren’t hazardous. Stereotypes demeaning people that happen to utilize cannabis are still rampant in our society and having an over-achieving spokesperson like Cyd really helps us overcome harmful caricatures that have permeated through our culture.
If you want to hear Cyd Maurer, and many, many other top quality speakers, you should attend the Oregon Medical Marijuana Business Conference. I attended the Oregon Medical Marijuana Business Conference in Eugene earlier this year, and it was amazing. This upcoming OMMBC is of particular interest to me because it’s right before limited recreational marijuana sales begin in Oregon on October 1st. I can’t wait to hear what everyone has to say that is speaking, and to see the exhibitors. It’s a very, very exciting time in Oregon, and the OMMBC is the perfect place to learn more about what is going on and to network with other cannabis industry professionals and activists. You can get tickets to the event at this link here.
