EMPLOYERS FACE DIFFICULT QUESTIONS UNDER NEW LAW

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- A new Oregon law allows medicinal use of marijuana,
but some workers could find themselves unemployed if they use the drug for
any purpose.

For example, commercial drivers who test positive for marijuana, medicinal
or not, will be pulled off the road, said Paula Barran, an attorney who
specializes in labor law.

Under federal law, the 108,000 Oregonians who hold commercial driver's
licenses are subject to random tests for drug and alcohol use, as well as
tests after accidents or when a supervisor has a reasonable suspicion of
drug use.

Also, federal law requires random drug testing of people who hold
"safety-sensitive" jobs in aviation, rail transport, pipelines and the
commercial marine industry.

Oregon's new law, passed by voters in November, permits people with a wide
range of illnesses to use medicinal marijuana.

Tests for marijuana use can pick up traces of the drug for as long as a
month after use.

"Nobody was focusing on this when the initiative was being debated," Barran
said. The measure "was promoted as a measure for people who are terminally
ill."

"But a lot of folks who are going to be using medical marijuana will be
holding down jobs -- people who use it for chemotherapy. People who have
multiple sclerosis are employed. It's not just allowable for last stages of
disease where death is imminent."

One concerned employer is the Port of Portland.

"We're in the question-asking phase," said Aaron Ellis, spokesman for the
Port of Portland. "What are the impacts with the state law and how would
they impact the federal drug-testing programs for the Coast Guard?

"We have 100 people who have a CDL (commercial drivers license) or are
certified under Coast Guard provisions. We're trying to figure out how these
people would be affected."

The medicinal marijuana issue could cause dissension in the work place,"
said Judith Clark, president of H.R. Northwest, the largest independent
human resources consulting firm in the Northwest.

"There are a lot of folks who are opposed to medical marijuana on moral
grounds," she said. "I can't think of many other things an employer can do
that has the ability to generate as high an emotional response."

Checked-by: Don Beck