As marijuana laws shift, many employers are also rethinking their stances

After November’s elections, recreational marijuana could be legal in nearly half the country. The decisions in Arkansas, Maryland, Missouri, North Dakota and South Dakota will come just a few weeks after the Biden administration said it would pardon thousands of people with federal felony convictions for simple marijuana possession. With the landscape around marijuana evolving across the nation — and coinciding with the rise of remote work that disperses a company’s talent across the nation — experts say employers need to stay abreast of marijuana law changes and update their policies to avoid running afoul of shifting laws. Employment law attorneys say many companies are softening their stance on marijuana or tweaking drug-testing policies.