The Ontario Broker - April 2019 - 15

HIRE, NOT HIGHER

A

ccording to Statists Canada, about
14% of Canadians use cannabis.
That means that in a brokerage
with seven people at least one
person uses cannabis, statistically speaking.
Many brokerages will have already crafted or
revised their HR policies to deal with cannabis
usage. For those brokerages that still need
to get a policy in place, Danielle Rossi, an
experienced human resources professional in
the broker channel, has the goods.

determine how it might affect their performance
at work. We can't stop them from taking it, if it's
been prescribed by their physician, so we need
to accommodate them while they're at work.
"Employees are not required to tell their
employer what their diagnosis is, but if they
are going to be taking cannabis for medical
use at work, then they need to disclose that
beforehand."
It's important for employees to be upfront about
medicinal use of cannabis, because if they aren't
and then suspicions are raised that they are
under the influence at work, they could face the
consequences as laid out in the policy.

"The intent of an employee policy is safety
- your safety and the safety of others in the
organization. It's also setting the expectations
and guidelines surrounding the use of it, and
misuse and abuse.

"An employee in the circumstance would be
subject to questioning and potentially dismissal."

"We combined our policy on cannabis with
our policy on alcohol. Because they're both
controlled substances the expectations are
largely the same. Use during work hours,
including during paid and unpaid breaks, on and
off-site is prohibited."

Some companies may also offer addiction
counselling and that too should be included in
the policy.
"Some individuals can form a dependency on
cannabis, same as they might with alcohol.
And they can both have the same result -
behavioural change. There are confidential
employee resource programs for employers to
provide to those who have a dependency."

While categorizing recreational cannabis
use and alcohol together seems relatively
straightforward, cannabis adds complications
due to its medical applications.
"Employees who are on medicinal cannabis have
to be treated differently. We need to work with
that employee and their attending physician to

WWW.IBAO.ORG

IBAO Members can acquire a sample HR Policy
in the IBAO Member Library.

15

APRIL 2019
http://WWW.IBAO.ORG http://WWW.IBAO.ORG
The Ontario Broker - April 2019

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