WILLMAR — In a coincidence of dates, the Kandiyohi County Board on Tuesday considered changes to the employee alcohol and drug policy on the same day that recreational marijuana became legal in Minnesota.
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"Today is the first day of major changes regarding cannabis use," said board chairman Commissioner Roger Imdieke.
The changes to the policy, which were approved by the County Board, impact only county employees, and have nothing to do with other questions surrounding the law in regard to smoking marijuana , such as if can it be done in places like county parks or in front of buildings.
"This is only addressing our employees," said Connie Mort, county human resources director.
The county did have an existing alcohol and drug policy which, when marijuana use was illegal, prohibited county employees from using it, even when not working. Now, the policy has been amended to allow off-duty use of marijuana.
"In a nutshell, this is going to be the same treatment as alcohol would be, because cannabis is now legal," Mort said.
While employees can now use marijuana when not at work, they are still prohibited from using it while at work or on call, and cannot show up for work while under the influence of marijuana.
"We would follow the same rules as we would with alcohol use," Mort said.
Another change for employees is the county will no longer test for marijuana during pre-employment drug tests. However, employees can still be tested for both alcohol...
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